Prompts of Tup
by AlreadyOnMars
Summary: The title says it all, 100 prompts of Tup. Genres will vary, as will ratings. K-T.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hello everyone! This is my first attempt ever at a prompt challenge, so I hope I do okay. The prompts I will be using are from the deviantArt 100 prompts of Tup challenge. Some of these will be OOC or AU. There will be various genres, but they will all be centred around Tup. The full list of prompts will be available on my profile page, and you can message me if you want me to do a specific one. Lastly, I do not own Starship, the totally awesome Team Starkid do.**

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><p><strong>21. Get up: <strong>Commander Up woke one morning with an unexpected surprise. Lieutenant Taz was asleep on his chest. She had one arm wrapped around him, the other pinned under him, her head resting on his shoulder. Up smiled as Taz mumbled something in her sleep.

"Get up," He whispered quietly in her ear, however, this only made Taz move closer to him.

"Mm, Up..." She whispered. Up flushed as red as Taz's bandana, his heart pounding. _Could she really like me... Like that?_ He thought. Taz's eyelids fluttered as she finally awoke. She rested where she was for a few moments before practically jumping away from the Commander. Her face was just as red as his, if not more, and she refused to look in his eyes as she stretched and got out of the bed. After all, he couldn't like her like that... Right?

**55**. **Accent: **Both of them had an accent. Up's accent was the second thing Taz noticed about him, after his piercing blue eyes. His accent was so endearing to her, hearing her name drawled in his accent was wonderful to her. The first time Up heard Taz speak was in Spanish, and he couldn't understand a word. However, he soon learned that she could speak English perfectly fine, but heavily accented. He smiled whenever she said "jou", and found her different way of pronouncing things irresistible.

**72. Victory: **A battle was raging around the team, many men had already died. Commander Up and Lieutenant Taz were among the only ones still alive. They were fighting back-to-back, taking out any robots. They slowly lowered their weapons, almost positive there were no more robots. They scanned the area one final time. There were no robots. A smile spread across both of their faces. Taz turned, jumping into Up's arms

"Up, we won!" Taz cried. Up spun the small Lieutenant around, joyful for their first victory in ages. Without thinking, Up kissed Taz, quickly pulling away. Both of them were blushing and avoiding eye contact. This was the first time Up realized that he was falling in love with his Lieutenant.

**77. Lies: **Taz was furious. Up had been lying to her for the past three months, skipping movie night, ignoring her in the mess hall and gym, and why? He was dating someone. A girl named Aliana, another commanding officer. When Up told her, she started shaking with rage and ran away before she hit someone. Now she was sitting by the lake near the training centre, letting tears flow freely down her face. _Weakness_. Why did Up matter so much to her? It wasn't like they were dating, but Taz felt betrayed. She thought of all the times they spent together, then about the ones that they could have had. "_Te odio, Up." _She screamed across the lake, scaring a flock of birds away. But as she said the words, she knew they weren't true. She would forgive him. Eventually. She always did.

**88. Flying:** "No, Up, I can't do it!" Taz wailed. They were planning on testing out the G.L.E.E.'s new flying machines. Taz saw them as the pair approached, and immediatly tried to escape. The flying machines were made entirely of a new laserproof material, and they were with a bottom of one-way glass, the rangers could see out and no one could see in. The thing is, Taz was afraid of heights.

"C'mon Taz, it'll be okay." Up tried to reassure his friend, but she was having none of it.

"No, you can go without me!" She replied, still trying to get away. However, before she could run off, Up had picked her up bridal style and carried her on board, Taz kicking and screaming the whole way. Once they had her strapped into her seat, she was bouncing around, twitching and jabbering excuses of why she couldn't go on this trip all of a sudden.

"Taz, it'll be fine," Up put his arm around her, rubbing her shoulder. They took off, Taz burying her head in his neck. "Taz, look, we're flying." Up said after a little while. The Mexican girl slowly opened one eye, seeing a landscape below her. She turned away from the Commander, looking at the beautiful scene below. She even unbuckled her seatbelt, crawling around the floor, looking at everything down on the ground. Up even joined her. Taz realized that the reason she wasn't scared anymore was because of Up. He was her mentor, her friend, and now he was the cure to her fears.

**54. Tide: **The waves lapped at her toes as she looked out over the sunset. Taz and Up were on their honeymoon, on an secluded island south of the Caribbean. While Up was fixing the broken faucet, Taz had gone down to the beach.

"You look pretty like that." Her husband's voice startled her at first, but Taz looked over her shoulder and smiled at the man she loved. She got up from the ground, brushing sand off of her legs. Up raised his brows at her skimpy attire; she was only wearing a dark red bikini. Taz walked slowly towards him before kissing him. She pushed herself onto her tiptoes, weaving her fingers into his hair. Up parted her lips with his, pushing his tongue into her mouth and he heard her moan against his lips. They broke apart, and he started kissing down her neck and onto her shoulders before Taz attacked him, pushing him to the ground. They continued kissing until they felt the tide wash up to their knees. "We should probably move before the tide washes us away." Up suggested.

"_No me importa."_ Taz whispered into his ear. They stayed on the beach until the tide was over their heads.

**34. Locked: **February was wandering around the Starship, trying to remember her way to Bug's room. She was checking every door, seeing strange things inside, test tubes, weird labs, and in one room, a giant alligator. However, there was one room that was locked, and no matter how hard February tried, she couldn't open the door. There were weird noises coming from inside, and she needed to find out what they were.

"What could be in there?" February wondered to herself "I should find out. After all, I am the schience officer." She took her zapper from her belt and shot the lock on the door. She walked in, and saw Up laying on top of Taz, kissing her. February screamed. "OMDG! I totally knew you guys were going to hook up!" At the sound of her voice, Up rolled off of Taz, who was covering herself with the comforter.

"_Ou__é__ mierda! Salga ahora mismo!" _Taz continued screaming at her until February finally got the picture. She slammed the door shut just before Taz threw her knife at the door. That was the day that February learned that some locked doors were meant to _stay_ locked.

**20. Breeze: **Taz breathed in the Mexican air, something she hadn't smelt in over ten years. She and Up were taking a vacation to the small town in Mexico that she grew up in. As they approached the city limits, tears pricked her eyes, but she reprimanded herself, saying she shouldn't cry in front of Up. A slight breeze caressed her cheeks as she looked at the rubble of the formerly glorious town. They got out of the car, finding her wrecked home, a ripped pink banner still hanging from the remnants of two trees. Taz half-smiles at the memory of her disastrous Quinceanera, and the day she met Up. He steps behind her, placing his hands over her shoulders, feeling the breeze of now-destroyed Mexico on his face. Taz placed a hand on top of his and turned around, whispering three words. "_Te amo, Up."_ She pushed onto her tiptoes and kissed him, a breeze seeming to surround only them.

**12. Stop Time: **If either of them could stop time, they would both have stopped just before Up was cut in half on Qo'noS. After that happened, Up was never the same, at least not until after their mission to Bug World. But the reason Taz wanted to stop time then, was because she never got a chance to tell him how she felt until two years later.

**50. Snore: **Taz lay beside the Commander in bed. After watching The Karate Kid, Taz was too tired to walk back to her cabin, so Up offered to let her stay with him for the night. However, one circumstance was unforeseen: Taz couldn't get to sleep. Why? Up snored. For the umpteenth time, Taz flipped over, trying to find a comfortable position. She poked Up in the side, hoping this would wake him. He flipped on top of her and continued snoring. Taz sighed, not wanting to do this. "Get off of me jou _beb__é grande!" _Taz yelled in his ear, effectively waking the Commander. He rolled over onto the floor, then got up, rubbing his sore shoulder.

"What the hell was that for, Taz?" Up demanded, climbing back into bed.

"Jou snore." Taz responded, turning onto her side, closing her eyes.


	2. Chapter 2

**4. Cheat: **Sometimes they liked to play cards. They usually played poker with the rest of the crew.

"I see jour bet..." Taz said, squinting at Krayonder "and I'll raise jou ten." She placed ten of her candies into the pot.

"Well, I fold." February said, tossing her cards in. Everyone stayed in the game except for February and Tootsie, who didn't understand the game at all. All the bets were over, and Taz was still confident in her hand. The six of them that were still in the game flipped over their cards, Specs first, Taz last. The closest hand to Taz's was Megagirl, who was probably counting cards. Taz flipped over her cards victoriously, a royal flush in her hands. She raked in the candy when she was interrupted.

"Taz, why are there cards in your shirt?" Up asked, raising an eyebrow at his lieutenant.

Taz flushed before retorting "Why were jou looking down my shirt, _ese_?" It was Up's turn to flush. The pair shifted awkwardly in their seats before Krayonder shouted "Hey, man, Taz was cheating!"

**78. Stormy: **Taz tossed and turned in her uncomfortable trainee bed. A storm raged outside her window, the lightning lighting up the entire room. Taz growled and covered her eyes with her pillow before groaning and getting out of her bed. She padded into the hallway and found the Commander's room. She knocked softly on the door and waited until Up opened it. Taz gave a sheepish smile when he opened the door. Up gestured her in, and Taz made herself comfortable on the couch.

"C'mon Taz, you can sleep in the bed with me." Up offered. Taz couldn't say no. Up's bed was a hundred times more comfortable than her own. They got under the covers, Taz snuggling in his arms. This is why she loved storms.

**93. Enchant: **Up had finally gathered the courage to ask Taz out. They were going to a ball that the G.L.E.E was holding, in honour of the Starship Rangers that made friends with the Bugs. He was nervous as he straightened his tie just outside of Taz's room. He knocked on the door, waiting for the petite girl to open it.

"I look _estupido._" Taz muttered, rolling her eyes after she opened the door. She wore a tight-fitting mermaid style bright red dress. A pair of strappy black high heels donned her feet, and hair extensions were in place, making her hair about shoulder length and pin-straight. Up looked at her wide eyed, clearing his throat before offering her his arm.

"You look beautiful." Up complimented, whispering in her ear. A small smile crossed Taz's face.

"Thank you." They walked to the ballroom, grand doors awaiting them. A hush fell over the room as they walked in, everyone surprised to see Taz out of her usual fatigues. She gave all who stared at her harsh glares, at which Up chuckled. They walked towards their crew, February squealing at Taz, who snarled.

"I knew you would look amazing in that dress!" February gushed "and I was so right about the hair extensions, they make you look so pretty!"

"Feb," Bug started "calm down." The group chatted for a little while, before they were called up to the podium. They were each awarded a medal for their bravery, and Bug was awarded status as a Starship Ranger. After the short ceremony, everyone went back to their business, but Taz went out onto the balcony. Up followed her.

"A medal of bravery, Up." Taz said fondly, tracing over the engraving with her fingertips. "I never really thought I'd make it this far. When I saw the robots, I thought I was doomed." Taz turned to face the Commander, her eyes glazing over. "But jou saved me Up. I owe my life to you." She gave him a hug.

Up smiled down at her. A slow song was playing faintly in the background. "Would you like to dance?" he asked, offering a hand. Taz took it, a shy smile on her face. They danced in silence, both of them surprisingly good, despite the fact that neither of them danced very much before.

"How's your night been, Taz?" Up asked as they returned to her quarters. Taz smiled and gave Up a quick kiss before responding.

"Enchanting."

**28. Recoil: **"C'mon Taz, why won't you tell me what's wrong?" Up was distressed. His little friend was upset, and she wouldn't tell anybody the reason.

"No, Up, _Ahora déjame en paz_!" Taz yelled. Up sighed. Every time he tried to get his new recruit to open up to him, she would recoil. _Maybe someday, she'll trust me enough to tell me what's going on _he thought, leaving her room . He returned later in the evening, after hearing from another trainee that Taz was just sitting in her room, crying.

"Taz..." Up knocked softly on her door "Taz, I know you're in there. Let me in." The door slowly swung open, and Up walked into the room, sitting on the small bed. Taz returned to her former position, curled up, eyes red. "Now, do you want to tell me what's wrong?"

"It's my _hermana _birthday today. She would've been five." New tears started falling from Taz's eyes. Up wiped them away, rubbing her back at the same time. "She was too young to die, Up."

"I know Taz, I know." The older man let her cry on his shoulder, staining his training uniform with salt, not that he cared. He learned that Taz didn't always recoil, but it took a good friend for her to open up to.

**97. ****Snow: **It was always warm in the town Taz grew up in, ergo, she had never seen snow before. One morning, she woke up and looked out the window in her quarters. A white substance was covering the ground, and more of it was falling from the sky. She ran to Up's room and knocked on the door. He opened the door, still half-asleep.

"Up! There's something wrong outside!" Taz yelled, dragging him to the window. Up looked outside and chuckled. "What jou laughing at?"

"Taz, that's snow." Up said. After seeing the puzzled look on her face he explained further. "Snow is the same thing as rain, but when it gets colder, it turns solid."

"So, is it hard, like ice?" Taz asked, still a little bit confused. Up fully explained snow to her, including snowball fights. Taz smiled deviously. "Can we have a snowball fight later?"

"Sure Taz, sure. Now, _please_ let me get back to sleep." Up pleaded. After lunch, Taz and Up got into snow gear and trudged outside. They began stocking up on snowballs, until Taz threw one that hit Up in the back of the head. Up scowled at her, and fired one back, hitting her in the stomach. They pelted each other with snowballs. An hour and three snow forts later, they decided it was a tie and that both of them were too good to be beaten. They went inside and got hot chocolate with foam and marshmallows.

"Dat was _muy divertido!"_ Taz cried as she took a sip of her hot chocolate. "I wish it snowed all year!"

"You'll be changing your tune after a few months of snow." Up replied gruffly, though he was smiling. He reached over all of a sudden, brushing foam off of Taz's cheek with the pad of his thumb. His hand lingered near her face for a little longer than necessary, causing the small girl to blush profusely. Taz loved winter.

**17. Experience: **Surprisingly, Taz actually had a little bit of experience with hand-to-hand combat. Up expected, due to her size, that she would never have laid a finger on another person. When Up first tried to fight her, he went easy on her. Boy, would he never make that mistake again. She immediatly went with a swipe to behind his knees, and he fell over right away. He looked up at Taz with a new respect, and a hint of desire towards the girl eight years his junior.

**70. Temperamental: **"_C__á__llate! Dejame en paz!"_ Taz yelled when Up tried talking to her. Up had found her by the lake, crying. He thought about what had happened recently that could have made her angry at him. He only thought of one thing: that he had started dating Aliana. _But I... She ran away before I could tell her, _thought Up. He approached her again, walking slowly towards the stone bench Taz was sitting on.

"Taz..." Up said slowly.

"Did jou not hear me? I said _LEAVE ME ALONE!_" Taz screamed. "I do _not_ want to talk to jou."

"Taz, earlier, when I told you about Aliana and I," Up said before Taz interrupted.

"Why aren't jou with her?"

"Because, Taz, you ran away before I could tell you. We broke up." Taz looked at Up, her eyes red from crying.

"Why?" She asked, her voice cracking. "Why would you break up with her? She's pretty, and smart, and your age."

"Because," said Up "She isn't you." At this statement, Taz's pout broke into a smile and she threw her arms around the Commander. Up locked his lips with Taz's, kissing her for the first time since they won a battle in the Robot Wars. Taz could be temperamental sometimes, but that was one of the things he loved about her.

**83. With you: **It would be their last battle together. Taz and Up were fighting against the aliens of planet 67-A12, but they were far more advanced than the Starship Rangers. Taz was shot in the shoulder, and while that would normally be a non-lethal wound, they had bullets that were infused with poison, that was spreading quickly. When she got shot, Up rushed over to her, holding her in his arms. "Taz!" He cried when he heard her scream "Taz, Taz, you're going to be okay, you'll be fine, we just need you to get back to the Starship," he said, more to himself than to the small woman.

"No," Taz whispered.

"What? It's just the poison talking, Taz, you'll be fine."

"Up. I have to die. There is no way to get the poison out of my body. Besides, if I'm dying, at least I'm with you." Taz said, her voice becoming weak "_Ha sido un honor servir a usted. Te amo, Up._" Taz went limp in Up's arms. Tears flowed down the Commander's face, and ignoring the other soldiers and the aliens, carried her to the Starship.

**47. Blush: **Up knew just how to make her blush. When he sent her a bouquet of flowers on every holiday, always accompanied by a card that said something like: _They say you can only fall in love once, but that's wrong. Every time I look at you, I fall in love all over again. ~Up_. When they were in the Cafeteria, in front of everyone, he would kiss her forehead or cheek. When they were alone, he would kiss an area on her neck just below her earlobe. Taz knew how to make Up blush as well. She would reach up and play with his moustache as they were watching _The Karate Kid_. She would give him cookies that said things like _You're nothing short of my everything_. She would nibble on his ear when they were kissing. They knew everything about the other, and trying to see who blushed more in a day was one of their favourite activities when they were on leave.

**40. Vital:** It wasn't until a few years before Up's injury that they realized that they were vital to each other. They found out one day when Taz had to go on a short mission when Up was sick; it was only meant to be a day or two. She said goodbye to Up in his room, where he was lying down. As soon as she took off in the Starship, he felt worse. He thought he was going to throw up, and his fever went from 99.3 to 102.5. he decided to report to the sick bay.

"It's a good thing you came when you did Commander," said the nasally voice of one of the nurses. "If your fever got any higher, you could have passed out. How long have you been sick for exactly?"

"About three days," Up responded "but it just got worse this morning."

Later in the evening, a nurse came by again. "That's odd." She remarked after taking his temperature. "It says on your chart that they gave you a drug that should make your fever go down, but it's gone up by point three since we last saw you."

Up shrugged, not knowing anything of medicine. _I wish Taz were here. _He thought _I'd be better if Taz were here. _

"Up? UP!" called Taz, knocking on his room door. Krayonder passed by her.

"Aw, dude, Up is in the sick bay. He checked in a little bit after you left." he told her. Taz stared wide-eyed at him before pushing him to the side and running towards the Sick Bay.

"I need to see Up, right now!" She demanded when the nurse at the desk asked what she wanted. Surprisingly, the nurse led her right to him. "Up?" She said tentatively. He was hooked up to a few machines, and he looked very sickly.

"Taz? Is that you?" Up asked. He reached out his hand, which Taz grabbed immediatly.

"Si, Up, it's me. What happened?"

"I got real sick right after you left. My head was pounding, and my fever went up by two and a half degrees." Up responded, his voice getting stronger by the second. He explained the rest of the story to his Lieutenant, who stayed by his side. They eventually fell asleep, their hands still clinging together.

The next morning, Up was released. "If Lieutenant Taz hadn't come back when she did, you could have died, what with the way your fever was progressing." After that time, neither of them ever left when the other was sick.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope everyone enjoyed that! I think that Enchant is a little bit OOC, but I'm okay with that. Also, just to let everyone know, Temperamental is a continuation of Lies from the last chapter. Thank you for reading, and please review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**65. Exception: **Taz thought that to be a tough son of a bitch, you couldn't have any feelings. She spent years evicting every last feeling of guilt and regret and love towards her family, but she still felt something. She felt something for Commander Up. Whenever she thought about him, she'd get butterflies in her stomach; she knew it wasn't good if she wanted to be a tough son of a bitch, so she held back those feelings for as long as possible. Then, one day she found out that Up returned the same feelings. Taz still thought that you couldn't have feelings to be a tough son of a bitch, but Up was the exception

**1. Mellow: **It was a rare time when either of them was mellow. The occasional time that they were was usually the morning after the watched _The Karate Kid_. Taz usually woke before Up, but she didn't like to disturb him, so she nestled herself into his arms and fell back to sleep. When Up woke up, he would find his arm was full of pins and needles due to the small girl asleep on it.

"Taz..." He gently shook the Starship Ranger "Taz, wake up, we've got to get to training." Taz sleepily opened one eye.

"No. _Quiero dormir."_ She mumbled, snuggling closer to the Commander. Up sighed and put his arms around her. If they were going to miss training, he might as well enjoy himself. Up enjoyed these mornings, when neither of them really had anything to do. They could just relax and mellow out.

**13. Alcohol: **It was Tequila Taz Tuesday. Taz _always_ went crazy when she had tequila.

"Up, Up." Taz yelled across the bar, giggling "_Venir aqui!"_ Up had no idea what she meant, but considering her wild hand gestures, he assumed that she meant to come over to her.

"Yes Taz?" Up asked. He had only drank a couple of beers. The Mexican girl smiled flirtatiously at him, batting her eyelashes.

"I've been thinking about jou." She said, wrapping her arms around Up's waist. The Commander swallowed, avoiding eye contact with his Lieutenant and hoping she wouldn't feel his heart pounding. "Jou're so _caliente..._" she said huskily. Taz started running a finger up and down his chest, staring at him with half-lidded eyes.

"Taz, you're drunk." Up said. He was trying to push back the thoughts he was having about Taz. "You're not thinking straight. You need to stop for a little while."

Anger burned in Taz's eyes all of a sudden. "No. I'm going to have _fun." _Taz insisted before turning and storming towards the bar. It wasn't until much later that Up saw Taz again. He had left the bar about two hours ago, and was watching _The Karate Kid_ before going to bed. Taz knocked on his door.

"Come in!" He called.

Taz stumbled into the room, hardly able to keep her balance. Up got up quickly and caught her just before she tumbled over.

"Are you okay, Taz?"

"Why is the room spinning?" Taz responded. Knowing what was going to happen next, Up ushered the small girl into the bathroom. She got down on her knees and threw up into the toilet. Up grimaced, but stayed with her anyways. Taz threw up a couple more times, Up rubbing her back, before she leaned back from the toilet and leaned on Up's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Up."

"What for? You have nothing to be sorry about."

Taz shook her head "I do. I do this every week. And every week you help me get through it, and let me stay with you for the night."

Up gave her a short half smile. "I don't mind. You're my friend, that's what friends do."

"Right... friends." Taz replied with something that could pass as a smile. _You have no idea that I want to be so much more._ She thought. "I promise to you, Up. I'm never drinking alcohol again," she groaned. Taz rested her head on Up's shoulder before she fell asleep. Up carried her to his room and tucked her into bed before getting in himself. He kissed her forehead, hoping she would keep her promise.

**76. Fire: **An extra-loud bell awoke Taz on a Tuesday morning. She growled and covered her ears with her pillow before an announcement rang out: _Would all personnel please evacuate the building. All personnel please leave the building immediatly. _This woke Taz up completely. She leapt out of bed, following the protocol for emergency evacuations, and not getting anything else. The Mexican girl opened the door, only to find a fire raging just down the hall, blocking the way she was supposed to exit.

"_Mierda!"_ She muttered and turned back into her room. Trying to open the window, Taz realized that it was sealed shut. "Well, I'm screwed." She said to herself. She took a towel from the bathroom, soaked it in water, and used it to seal the crack between the door and the floor.

Up stood outside the burning building, searching for Taz when he heard a window smash far above him.

"Help!" He heard Taz cry. She had smashed the window, but couldn't get out of her room due to the bars blocking her window.

"Dammit, Taz, didn't you hear the alarm?" He called up to his Lieutenant

"De fire is right outside my door, _idiota_!" Taz responded

"Well, shoot the bars off with your Zapper!"

"I am _estupido!_ Why didn't I think of that?" She momentarily left the sight of the people down below before reappearing only seconds later. "_Mierda!_ I must have left my Zapper in the training room."

"Okay... I'm sure the Firemen will be here soon! Is everything okay in your room?" Up asked.

"Yeah, everything is fine for now." Taz said. "I think de smoke will start coming in soon." She eyed the door carefully, then the vents, wondering which would betray her. Up waited for fifteen minutes, during which Taz was silent.

"Coleman!" Up barked suddenly, addressing a recruit that was sitting under a nearby tree. "Did anyone call the fire department?"

"I'm not sure, sir." She responded. "Usually a fire brigade comes in about five minutes, so I'm assuming that nobody did."

"Shit." Up muttered. "Holmes! Give me your Zapper." A engineering officer silently handed his Zapper over to the Commander. "Okay. I'm going in to rescue Taz. By the time I get out here, I want the EMS here, as well as the fire department."

On the third floor, Taz was sitting on her bed for a few minutes after her conversation with Up. Then the smoke started pouring in through the air vent. "_Hijo de puta!"_ She swore under her breath as she grabbed the thin covers on her bed, using them to cover her mouth and nose. As time went on, the covers became less affective and the sharp smell of smoke filled her nostrils. Taz started feeling lightheaded and passed out on her bed.

Up had used a rag to cover his nose and mouth, and was running up stairs, the sting of smoke in his eyes. When he reached the third floor, he saw the problem. A giant fire was raging in front of him. He hoped that the fire hadn't reached Taz yet, but her room was at the end of the hallway, so he hoped not. He quickly thought of how to reach the small Mexican girl, coming up with a plan. Up launched his plan, and after three minutes of shooting, using a shower rod as an impromptu pole vault and avoiding flames, he reached the other side of the fire. Up kicked down Taz's door, coughed from the smoke that poured out of it, and rushed in. He saw Taz laying on her bed, curled up as though she was sleeping, but her laboured breathing told him otherwise. He picked her up and shot through the bars barricading her window. Luckily, the fire department was there by that time and was about to set up a ladder outside of her window. Up handed Taz off to the masked firefighter, before following her down.

"You were really brave, Commander." Everyone congratulated him on his rescue, but he pushed them away. The EMS were putting an oxygen mask on Taz, and after a few minutes of steady breathing, she came to.

"Up?" She blinked wearily, her voice scratchy. "What happened?" Up told her the story, and Taz smiled at him when it was finished. She threw her arms around him "Thank _Dios muerto_ that you saved me Up, but jou could have waited for the firefighters."

"Naw, I couldnt've. I care about you too much to wait for twenty minutes more. You could've died." Up said, giving his little friend a hug. "Besides, who else would I watch _The Karate Kid _with?"

**32. Mirror: **Taz looked at herself in the mirror, seeing a girl that wasn't her. February had put in hair extensions that pinched her scalp, gave her a slinky dress that was bright red, and a pair of strappy shoes that she would never have worn if it were any other occasion. Taz had refused to take off her dog tags, however, and February hadn't protested, saying that she couldn't find another necklace anyways. To her, she looked like a girl in an alternate dimension in the mirror, one who's town hadn't been destroyed at age fifteen, who lost everyone in the robot wars, someone who had a childhood. She put in stud earrings and waited for Up to knock on her door. About five minutes later, he did.

"I look _estupido_." She muttered after she opened the door. Then she saw the wowed look on Up's face, and heard him compliment her. _Maybe dressing up wasn't so bad_.

**41. Dawn:** A cool breeze swept around Taz, who was standing on the crisp, newly-painted white porch of their cottage. It was five thirty in the morning, and Taz had woke up only a few minutes ago, threw a robe on, grabbed a tea from the kitchen and went to stand on the porch. It was quiet outside, the sun was just starting to rise, casting a beautiful reflection on the lake. Taz sighed and leaned on a post.

Inside, Up rolled over seeking the warmth of his wife, but couldn't find it. He opened his eyes groggily and looked around for Taz. When he didn't find her, he knew that she was outside. Taz always loved dawn. He got out of bed to join her, putting on water for coffee as he passed through the kitchen.

Taz tilted her head, looking at a wolf that was only twenty or so meters away. It ran away suddenly, just before a pair of muscular arms circled her waist. "Good morning." A seductive voice sounded in her ear. A smirk formed on Taz's face before she turned around and put her arms around Up's neck.

"_Buenos dias._" Taz said. She pushed onto her tiptoes and gave Up a peck on the lips.

"Last night was fun. We should do it more often." Up said cheekily. A smile crossed Taz's face.

"_Idiota. _We do that practically _every _night." responded Taz, still smiling broadly.

"Mmm." Up sounded in agreement before capturing her lips in a heated kiss. He slipped his tongue into her mouth and lifted her up. Taz wrapped her legs around his hips and pushed her tongue in too, fighting for dominance. Suddenly, the wolf that Taz had been watching howled, almost as though it was cat-calling them. They broke apart, laughing. Dawn was always their favourite time of day.

**56. Indirect: **Up had been dropping hints for months, trying to alert Taz to how he felt. He would let his hand linger on her shoulder or waist for a few seconds longer than needed, bring her food at lunch, offer to let her stay in his quarters after _The Karate Kid_. She wasn't picking up on _any _of it, and Up was getting frustrated. After doing the last thing he could think of, he pulled Taz aside after dinner one day.

"Taz, I- um, I, I, I really like you." He stammered, closing his eyes after the sentence. After a few seconds and not feeling a slap or punch, he slowly opened one eye. Taz was grinning broadly at him. Taking this as a good sign, he leaned down and kissed her. She pressed herself against the older officer, kissing him back with a passion that had been pent up for eight years.

"It took jou long enough." Taz said when they broke apart.

"What?" Up asked.

"It's taken jou long enough to finally really admit it to me. Why did you take the indirect approach instead of telling me to my face?"

"I don't know Taz, I wish I had told you seven years ago."

"Jou've liked me since then?"

"Yeah. Remember when I stayed up with you for three days, teaching you calculus? That's when I started liking you."

"I liked jou from the moment you cut me down from the rope." The pair smiled at each other and walked back into the cafeteria, hands intertwined.

**27. Obsessive: **At the moment, Taz was obsessed with one thing: her baby. She and Up had been married for a little over a year and she found out she was pregnant only a few weeks ago.

"Up, dis is what de baby looks like!" Taz said, pointing to an illustration of what the baby looked like at one month.

"Ugly lookin' thing, isn't he?" Up responded jokingly. Taz elbowed him in the stomach.

Two months later, they went in for their first ultrasound. Doctor Goldman put a clear gel on Taz's tiny baby bump. She used a tool to scan her, and an image appeared on the screen. It was grainy and you could hardly tell that it was human. The doctor gestured to different sections of white on the screen, pointing out the head and legs.

"Your baby should be due around the twenty-third of September." The doctor said after pointing out one of the baby's hands. Just as she was about to turn off the machine, it looked like the baby was waving at them. Taz gasped, and looked towards Up, who was smiling as wide as he did on their wedding day. She grabbed the hand that was resting on her shoulder, and gave it a squeeze.

Taz seemed to be on a quest to find out everything about babies. She got out multiple pregnancy books from the G.L.E.E library, and she was recording the foods she craved in a little blue book.

"Up!" She called one day in June. She wore a maternity tank top and a pair of camouflage shorts. "Can you get me some pickles? And rocky road ice cream?" She enquired when her husband showed up. He raised an eyebrow at the combination of foods, but didn't protest. One thing he had learned was to _never_ question Taz when she was pregnant. All the extra hormones gave her already fiery temper an extra snap. Up joined her in obsessing over the baby when he learned that it had already developed little toes.

When she was six months pregnant, she was obsessive about the baby kicking. She would walk around with her hands on her stomach, rubbing around and waiting for the baby to kick. Whenever she did, she would give a small shriek and call Up over.

The baby was finally born on September 27th and both of them thought that she was the most precious thing in the world. Yes, sometimes they were obsessive, and that was a good thing.

**99. Letters: **"Up, please don't leave!" Taz pleaded. "Just stay home! Don't go." Tears were coming to her eyes. "Don't be gone."

"Baby, you know I have to go. I won't be long." Up wore combat fatigues and dog tags. A cab was waiting outside their home to take him to the airport. Up was going to war.

"Don't flirt with any girls. And please, just _don't _get hurt." Taz was openly crying now."In case you feel alone then... here." She handed him a shirt that she had been wearing earlier in the week.

"Something to remember me by." Up responded, and passed her one of his oversized hoodies. Taz threw her arms around him, giving him the tightest hug ever. He kissed her, then turned around and left.

_Dear Up, _Taz wrote _I'm lonely here. I miss you. Please come home. Nothing interesting happening. Just so you know, I'm still in your sweater._ _Love, Taz. _She was curled up wearing the sweater that reached halfway down her thighs when Up's response came.

_Dear Taz, I hate this place. I miss you. I miss your smile, your face, your sense of humour. I haven't taken off your shirt once. Love, Up._ She smiled at his letter. They exchanged letters as quickly as possible, mailing the next one the same day that a response arrived. Exactly one year after he was deployed, Taz received a notice. She was scared to open it, afraid he had died, but when she opened it, she was happier than she had been in twelve months. Up was coming home.

Taz drove to the airport and waited anxiously at the terminal. She saw Up walk off the plane and screamed, running towards him. She jumped on him, circling her legs around his waist and kissing him deeply. "I'm home. I'm back." Up said when she was done kissing him. "That was way too long. You're still wearing my sweater." He remarked. She wore it with a pair of grey leggings.

"Jou are still wearing my shirt." The shirt that she had given him was very tight on him, and just passed the inspection of any army general.

When they got home, they crashed into the couch in the living room, kissing. "I missed jou so much." Taz said between kisses. "I need jou now."

**22. Villain: **_"Que estupido hijo de puta, por que demonios hiciste eso?"_ Taz screamed at her boyfriend. "Jou- jou- _culo!_"

"You're making me the villain here?" Up questioned "You're the one that was practically kissing that bastard!"

"No, I wasn't. _Jou_ on the other hand, were letting that _puta_ all over jou." Taz retorted. Silence resonated around them for a few minutes. Taz sighed. "What are we even fighting about? Just because I got a little jealous... Our relationship is stronger than this. Let's forget about it."

Up smiled a little bit. "You're right. Neither of us is the villain, that would be those people from the bar."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hi! I hope you all enjoyed those! I apologize that Alcohol is a little bit choppy, I have never been around someone that is drunk, nor have I been drunk. Same with Obsessive, I have never been pregnant, nor around someone that is. Letters is kind of AU, where Up has to go off to war, but it's not in the same time frame as Starship. I do not own Starship, and please review! **


	4. Chapter 4

**5. Transparent: **When Up first met Taz, he could tell what she was feeling, just by looking in her eyes, or watching her mannerisms. She was utterly transparent. The colour of her eyes changed, a dark brown, almost black, when she was angry. They softened to a milk chocolate when she was happy, and held the tone of melted chocolate when she was sad. As she got older, and went through more training, it was harder for Up to tell how she felt without asking. When he did ask, he usually got punched. He found that the same eye colours were there, but they were harder to spot. After he was cut in half during the robot wars, he couldn't read her at all. However, a few years later, when they became closer again during the mission to Bug World, Up found that she was still easy to read, he just needed to look a little harder. And when they started dating, well, Taz was like an open book again.

**96. Pyjamas: **Taz and Up were watching _The Karate Kid_. As the credits rolled, Taz yawned.

"Do you want to stay here for the night?" Up asked hopefully. Smiling, Taz replied

"Sure. I'll go get my pyjamas. Dese _estupido_ fatigues aren't exactly de most comfortable." Taz left, leaving Up to smile widely until she came back.

She returned in about ten minutes, wearing her PJ's. Up had never seen her in anything but her special occasion dresses, casual outfits or fatigues. Her pyjamas consisted of an oversized shirt, and a pair of shorts. Up swallowed as he felt a tingle of desire run through his body. He got up, heading towards his own bathroom.

"I'll go put on my PJ's too." He said, grabbing them from the bed. Taz bit her lip as he left, holding back a smile. This was the first time he had actually asked her to stay the night, instead of just falling asleep. Up came back out, just wearing a pair of pyjama bottoms. Taz raised her eyebrows at this, he usually never exposed his robot side. She had seen it before, but not since he first got it three years ago. The skin was grafted perfectly onto chrome. It wasn't too shiny, it looked almost buffed. The robot matched his other side in shape, the arms and pectorals were symmetrical. Taz felt the same prickle of desire that Up had as they went under the covers. "G'night." Up said hesitantly.

"_Buenos Nochas"_ Taz responded, facing away from Up. There was electricity between them, and they could both feel it. Up rolled over, facing the same way as Taz. He slowly slid his arm around her waist. Taz's heart was racing, hoping that something was finally going to happen between them. She rolled to face him and opened her eyes. Up's eyes were looking down at Taz, and they were filled with something she had never seen before. "Up, I-"

Up cut her off with a kiss, which she eagerly returned. When they moved apart, Up broke the awkward silence. "Um, Taz..." he started "I love you." Taz smiled widely.

"_Te amo, _Up."

**18. Fatality:** "Come on, come on!" Up cried; a grenade was coming his way, no backup in sight. With a flash of light, the grenade exploded.

_ "Fatality. Up67, you have been killed by TAZ117_." A robotic voice rang out of the Xbox 1200.

"Ha! I killed jou!"

"Damn it Taz, you've gotten good." Up said as she reset the console for a new game. Taz flashed him a smile and blew pretend smoke off of her controller.

**90. Sword:** "So these are the training rooms," Up led around a newly-recruited Taz, who was wearing her fatigues proudly, even though the top half of her uniform was far too big for her.

"Oh, can we go in dere?" Taz asked hopefully.

"Sure," Up replied. He unlocked the door. The training room was empty, due to the fact that it didn't open until after 11:00. Taz ran inside, looking at all of the equipment. She took a liking to the punching bags right away. He watched the small girl for a few minutes with a smile on his face until an idea occurred to him. He slipped away without her noticing, then returned a few minutes later. "Hey, Taz, come over here."

Taz walked over to where Up was standing, curious. "What is it?" He showed her two long swords that had silver blades and gold handles. Her eyes widened, used to seeing small knives. "Those are so cool!" She exclaimed "Can I try one?" Up handed her one and watched again as she began practising.

"Do you want to try fighting me with it?" Up asked. They didn't use swords often anymore; they weren't very affective against the robots. Taz nodded eagerly. The two swords clinked together, scraping occasionally as the pair duelled. After about ten minutes, Taz's sword fell out of her hand. Up wiped the sweat off his forehead with the back of his hand, "Damn, Taz. You're pretty good."

"Thanks." Taz replied. She took Up's sword to put it back in the storage locker. "I'm better with knives though."

"You'll have to show me some day." Up said, rather impressed with the small girl. Up looked into her eyes, searching for something. Other rangers were starting to filter in, wondering who the new girl was. After a little while, Up introduced her. "This is Taz. She's our new recruit."

**30. Collide: **The first time it happened, they were watching _The Karate Kid._ It was just the same as any other time, except for one moment.

"Do you want some popcorn?" Up asked Taz, who was leaning on his shoulder. She looked up at him. Their gazes collided and it seemed like the first time they had looked at each other. Taz noticed just how blue his eyes were; they looked like the oceans she had only seen in pictures. Up saw soft pink lips and chocolate eyes. Taz shifted her eyes away, cheeks colouring.

"Sure. Do jou want me to get it?" Taz asked. She moved away from Up slightly.

"Uh, naw. I'll go." Up got up, putting the movie on pause. '_I can't believe I've never noticed how pretty she is,'_ He thought.

**73. Delivery:** Detective Felton had never felt worse. His job was to deliver news of dead loved ones back to their families. There was only one person on the list today: Tazia Lopez-Walker. Everyone knew that Lieutenant Taz was tough, so he had no idea how she'd react. He walked up to her quarters and knocked on the door.

"Yes?" Taz opened the door, wondering who could be calling at such an early hour. Detective Felton took off his hat and tucked it under his arm.

"Are you Mrs. Lopez-Walker?" He asked. Taz nodded in response. "I have come to inform you that your husband, Up Walker, has been killed in battle."

Her eyes widened in disbelief "No," she whispered "No, it can't be true." Tears came to her eyes. She turned and shut the door, still trying to maintain her reputation. They flowed freely down her face. She sat down on the couch and cradled her head in her hands. How could Up, _her _Up, the toughest son of a bitch she had ever met, be dead?

"Mama?" A soft voice sounded from the corner of the room. "Was that Dada?"

"No James. Um- Dada won't be coming home." Taz told her eldest child, who was only three. "He died in a battle." James's lower lip started trembling.

Detective Felton, standing outside the door, knew that this was the worst delivery that he had ever done.

**37. Urban: **Taz had lived in an urban environment for her whole life. There were few trees and only small patches of grass, so she was pleasantly surprised when Up took her to the house he had grew up in, and currently owned.

"Dis is quite nice." Taz complemented as he showed her through the house. It had white shutters on the outside; a green, overgrown lawn; a white picket fence and it was painted a buttery yellow colour.

"Really? I thought you'd prefer the urban environment." Up said. He led her into the kitchen and grabbed a beer from the fridge. He offered one to Taz, which she politely refused.

"Oh, I still do. Like where I grew up." She nodded and took a sip of the water she had. "But I think this would be a better place to start a family." Taz added after a moments pause, blinking innocently. Up's eyes widened, startled at her sudden admission.

He cleared his throat awkwardly before saying "Well, yes, it would be better for that. Did I show you the master bedroom yet?"

**63. Notice:** The day that they met, Taz noticed how strong and handsome Up was. He noticed that she was pretty, but thought she was much too young for him. About two years later, she wore makeup for the first time. Okay, so it was the first time she wore it voluntarily. She wore a little bit of mascara and blush, hoping Up would notice her. Much to her dismay, he didn't.

"Jou know, about two years after we met, I started wearing makeup." Taz said shyly, many years later.

"Why?" Up asked, surprised that his tough son of a bitch would ever wear makeup of her own volition.

Taz chuckled. "I was trying to get jou to notice me." She explained. "It didn't really work."

"Oh, Taz. I always noticed you. Even without the makeup."

**43. Memorial:** "We are here to honour Tazia Felicitas Lopez-Walker. She grew up in a small town in Mexico, a young, weak girl. She died the woman we all knew her; a tough son of a bitch." A funeral facilitator talked of Taz as if he knew her. Everyone wore black, even Megagirl had had her usual white plates and silver body replaced with black and grey, far more appropriate. Tears were pricking at everyone's eyes. Tootsie was already crying freely.

"I first met Taz on Starship 15A-2." February said after the man finished his bit and asked if anyone would like to say a few words. "She seemed like a mean girl, but when you got to know her, she was really, really nice. Like really nice. We were best friends." Up scoffed at the last remark. _He _was her best friend. Everyone that was on 15A-2 said a piece, as well as a few of her friends from the academy. Then it was Up's turn.

"I met Taz when she was fifteen. The robots had attacked her village, and they had strung her up like a pinata. I rescued her and brought her back to the Starship..." Up told their story, which was interesting to some people who had never heard the legends of Taz and Up. After the funeral, they had a memorial service. All the people there had talked to Up, expressing their sorrow that Taz was gone.

Long after that service, when it was almost midnight; Up walked back to where Taz was buried. He touched her name on the headstone and whispered. "Wait for me?"

**59. Try Again:** "ARRGGGHHH!" A growl from Taz's room startled Up as he walked past. He opened the door slightly as he knocked, wondering what the problem was.

"Is there something the matter, Taz?" He asked after Taz had let him in.

"It's dis _estupido_ calculus!" She practically yelled. "When de hell am I going to use dis _mierda _in real life?"

Up chuckled "Calculus is easy, Taz." He reassured her.

"Easy? _Easy?_ Jou think dis _mierda_ is easy?"

"O'course. Let's see your problem. This isn't so hard. See, you just divide this guy here by this thingy here..." Up spent the next twenty minutes explaining calculus to Taz. "Now, you try the next problem."

"Okay..." Taz thought for about five minutes, scribbling on the paper, breaking her pencil several times. "Is de answer pi times forty two squared?"

"No, Taz, try again."

"Is it six hundred and eighty times pi to de square root of 81?" She asked.

"No." Up said with a sigh. "When's your final?" He asked.

"In three days." Taz replied.

"Okay. I guess we'd better get going, then."

"Jour going to help me?"

"Sure, why not. I've got nothing better to do for three days." So, for three days, Up and Taz stayed up together, taking hour long naps every once in a while, and drinking more coffee than most people did in a month.

"So it's... seventy three cubed minus forty two divided by the square root of eleven?" Taz asked hopefully on the morning of her exam. She was dreading that Up would say 'Try again' as he had so many times during the last seventy two hours.

"That's right, Taz! You've gotten the last ten problems right, I think you're ready for your exam."

"YES!" Taz cried. She ran off, it being only five minutes before her class started.

A few days later, Taz came running at Up. "Up! I got a eighty eight percent on my exam!"

"That's wonderful Taz!" He picked her Up and hugged her tightly.

"_Muchas gracias, me habria dejado sin ti!"_ She said with a huge grin before kissing his cheek.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Again, I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. Taz's middle name in 'Memorial' was inspired by _roman-rain_'s _Kicking It Up a Notch_ on deviantArt. It's a totally awesome graphic novel, you should check it out!**


	5. Chapter 5

**19. Helping Hand:** For a while, Taz considered being a medic before deciding that it wasn't for her. This was before the robots attacked her village, but she had learned a few things before realizing that she wasn't very good at it.

Up and Taz were fighting a battle in South Africa against the robots. It was in the middle of a savannah, but there chunks of sharp metal, scraps from robots that had already been destroyed, littered all over the area. "Move over, Taz." Called Up, who was pulling out a far larger gun. A giant Autobot was attacking. He shot the Zapper, the force of the gun knocking him a good fifty feet backwards. Up grimaced when he landed on a discarded piece of metal. Sitting up, he felt the sharp edge break the skin on his back, creating a short cut just above his camouflage pants. He rose to his feet again, ignoring the sharp pain. About an hour later, the robots were destroyed and they headed back to the ship.

"Up, jou're bleeding!" Taz exclaimed, following behind the Commander.

"Huh? Oh. Right." He said, touching his back. "It can wait until we get back to the base." They had stopped moving. Taz bent over to get a better look. She winced at the wound.

"No, it can't Up. Jou've probably lost a lot of blood already." Taz bit her lip, worried for her friend before she remembered that she learned to do stitches. "I'll have to give jou stitches when we get back on de ship." She said decisively.

Up turned, an alarmed look on his face. "Um, do you even know how to give someone stitches?"

"_Si._ I learned when I was younger." Up looked at her, not really wanting her to give him stitches, but at the same time, wanting to trust her.

"Alright. Is everything you need on the ship?"

"_Si_." They got onto the ship and went into Up's room. Taz carried a first-aid kit she had in the Lieutenant's quarters. Up had taken off his shirt so that Taz could have better access to the wound. When Taz saw, butterflies erupted in her stomach and she quickly averted her eyes to stop from staring. "Okay, lay down." Up obeyed, laying on his stomach. "Dis is probably going to hurt."

Taz took the supplies and prepped for the stitches. Up let out a loud groan when Taz first poked the needle through. "Sorry, sorry!" She apologized. Up tried to stifle his cries for the rest of the procedure, which took about a half hour.

"Thanks Taz," said Up when she was finished and had put a bandage over the stitches. "I can always count on you to lend a helping hand."

**35. Punch: **"Hey babe, wanna come back to my cabin?" A visiting Lieutenant once said this to Taz in a bar. She was sitting, having a drink with Up, and when she heard this voice, anger flared in her eyes. As soon as he saw this, Up knew someone was going to get hurt.

"Jou talking to me?" Taz asked when she turned. The Lieutenant nodded eagerly and grabbed at her chest. Her jaw stiffened and she hit him in the eye with her right fist. "Maybe jou can't see, _cabron_. I'm kind of with someone here. So how about jou just un-fudge yourself and go find some _puta_ to feel up." The Commander immediatly felt proud of his girlfriend. Unfortunately, the Lieutenant didn't take the hint and pushed himself towards Taz. She growled and gave him a right hook to the jaw, followed by a hit to the nose. He was too drunk to do anything, so he crawled away. Up smiled at her proudly. His girlfriend may not always be the most pleasant person, but boy, did she know how to throw a punch.

**80. Decay:** For a while, Taz and Up's friendship was on the verge of decaying. It was during Taz's third year of training. Up was dating an Admiral, and Taz was the crush of many boys in her class. Between all of the dates and tests, they hardly had time to hang out. They would nod to each other in the hallways and cafeteria, but they hardly ever exchanged words. It was only when Up noticed Taz and Junior holding hands that they finally talked again.

"Taz, are you dating Junior?" Up asked after he pulled her aside after a training session.

"What do jou care, _hombre?_" Taz asked. "It's not like we've talked in the past six months."

"I know, but..." Up trailed off, not sure how to continue the interrogation. "Don't you notice that Junior's always late and he has a vacant expression?"

Taz raised an eyebrow at Up's feeble attempts to discredit him. "_Si._ Have _jou_ not noticed that he reeks of pot? Dat is why he has a 'vacant expression.' But again, why do jou care?"

"I worry about you, Taz. I know you can get along just fine, but I miss spending time with you." Up admitted with a half-smile.

"I miss jou too, Up." Taz told him after a moment.

"Well, then whaddaya say we watch _The Karate Kid_ tonight? The good one, with Jackie Chan!"

"Sure." Taz grinned. She had been worried about their friendship collapsing, but one time she holding hands with Junior by accident, and they were back. After that, there was no evidence of decay in their friendship.

**68. Harm: **It never really occurred to Taz that when she made fun of Up after his injury, she was preventing him from being tough again. While it wasn't entirely her fault, part of it was due to the Commander's lack of self-confidence, she didn't exactly help him get back up either. Whenever she called him 'Weak' or when she said 'Jou are a sad, spayed little puppy.' Up's confidence level went down. _It would be comforting to know that she believed in me..._ he would think. It wasn't until much later that Taz realized she was doing more harm than good.

**33. Kneel:** They were watching _The Karate Kid_ when it happened. Taz was leaning on Up's shoulder, fiddling with a bit of string on her camouflage pants when she suddenly felt Up shift under her. She lifted her head slightly and looked up at him. Up knelt in front of her and pulled out a small box from his pocket. Taz sat up, eyes wide.

Up cleared his throat before beginning. "Taz, I've known you for ten years. I've liked you for nine of em, and I know that we've only been dating for a year, but, I love you. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Tazia Felicitas Lopez, will you marry me?" Up opened the box, revealing a gold ring with three diamonds embedded in the centre.

A wide grin broke out on Taz's face. "_Si_" She said. Taz wasn't one to make a fuss about things like this, so Up slipped the ring onto her left hand. He got up from the floor and kissed her. Even though she was staying extremely quiet, Taz was bursting with joy inside. Up was trying to conceal a smile, though failing miserably. This was the happiest day of their lives.

****85. Jump:****For a while after Up rescued Taz, she would get scared at even the smallest of noises. Every night she would come padding to his room after a floorboard creaked or a branch scraped against the windows. He thought it was extremely cute. She would jump whenever someone spoke suddenly, and she had the most innocent of expressions on her face when she walked into his room. The very first time she went on a training mission, the simulation robots scared her so much, she jumped onto Up's back, who proceeded to carry her for the rest of the day. Taz was glad when she stopped jumping every time something scared her, but Up was secretly sad she wouldn't be jumping on him anytime soon.

**9. Write:** _Dear Taz, I just want to tell you that... I love you. _Up wrote on a scrap piece of paper, then crushed it in his fist when he realized how stupid he sounded. He tried writing again. _Taz, I've known you for a long time, and for a while now, well, actually seven years, I've liked you. I mean, liked you in that particular way. _Up ripped the page in half. He sounded like a lovesick teenager. "Writing letters is stupid." He muttered to himself.

Outside, Taz knocked on the door. "Come in!" Up called from inside. She walked into the room, and the first thing she noticed were the scraps of paper littering the floor.

"What are dese?" She asked, picking one up. Taz read it quietly to herself. Up was panicking in his head; he had never meant for her to read them. Her cheeks coloured when she finished. "Are dese true, Up?" Taz asked, sitting down on the bed.

Up nodded, head downcast. "_Mirame._" Taz told him. He reluctantly looked towards the small Mexican girl. She leaned over and kissed him. Maybe writing letters wasn't so stupid after all.

**23. Worst Day:** Surprisingly, Up's worst day wasn't when he got cut in half. It was far earlier in his life than that. It was a day about five years after he had met Taz. She had graduated last year and was going on her first mission. Of course, he was going on one too. Three days before he left, he found out who his crew was; the lists were posted outside the Admiral's office. He looked over his list, scanning the names and looking for Taz Lopez. He did a double take when it wasn't on the list. He read it over again, just making sure that he didn't miss it. Her name wasn't there. She wasn't going on her first mission with him. His smile immediatly vanished, replaced with a stony expression. This was the worst day ever.

The worst day Taz ever had waswhen the robots attacked her village. However, the second worst day was when she almost didn't get admitted to the G.L.E.E. Academy. The Admiral at the time was a man of tradition, and no woman had ever been accepted into the Galactic League. Taz had protested, yelling at the Admiral until Up stepped in and told him how tough she was. The Admiral let her in, but with extreme hesitation. If she failed one class, she was kicked out. She was outraged at the man's sexist attitude and was in a foul mood for the rest of the week.

**95. Powerless: **Taz hated the way she stood there, powerless as Optimus Prime held Up in the air, shooting a circular buzz saw at him and cutting him in half. Later, she wished she could have done something, shot at the robot or at least not have gotten attacked. At the time, she stood there in shock, not wanting to believe that Up was about to be killed. But she was powerless at the time.

**58. Puzzle: **_The Karate Kid _blared on the TV, a storm raging outside. Suddenly, the power flickered, then shut off completely. "_Mierda!"_ Taz said, "Where are de flashlights?"

"Don't have any. Got candles though." Up got up and found the candles, picking up a box of matches on the way by. He set them down on the table and struck a match. Up lit all the candles and set the m down around the room, putting a two on the table between them. Shadows were cast about the room, lighting both of their faces at odd angles.

"So what do we do now?" Taz asked.

"I have some puzzles." Up suggested.

"Really? Jou have puzzles in jour room?"

"They're good for your mind."

"Sure, why not." Up grabbed a puzzle from the shelf and set it down on the table. He poured out the pieces and set the box down. They immediatly got to work. Up quickly had the outside done, while Taz was still sorting the pieces. Up moved over to help her. Their legs were touching now, and both of them could feel their heartbeats speed up. He reached over and grabbed a few of the puzzle pieces, and in the process, brushed Taz's hand with his own. Butterflies erupted in her stomach. Taz looked over at Up and saw his face illuminated with a warm glow from the candle. His eyes looked as though they were flecked with bits of gold, and his skin was bathed in gold. He had never looked more handsome.

She went back to the puzzle, fitting a few pieces together as Up looked over at her. She looked beautiful in the candlelight, the yellow light making her eyes a beautiful light brown, almost creamy. He bit his lip and looked down again, putting most of the pieces in the pile he was holding together. They spent the rest of the night finishing the puzzle, and stealing glances at the other any chance they got.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope you liked this chapter! I do realize that Jump was in a chapter previously, but I removed it and put it here because there was one too many prompts in that chapter. Anyways, _Cali-Dancer_ is doing a _100 Prompts of Tup_ project as well, hers is really good, go check it out! Please review!**


	6. Chapter 6

**36. Tight: **"Commander Up," Junior said one day "I don't think Taz should spar with so many people anymore."

Up glared at the seventeen year old. "Why the hell not? She's the best at sparring, far better than any of you candy-asses."

"But she's so small and..."

"And anyways, why wouldn't she tell me herself. She thinks I'm cool. We're tight! Besides, she's the best dead-goddamn fighter out of all you recruits. Sorry boy, but she's staying."

**8. Addicted: **She was addicted. Addicted to the way he said her name, his accent, the way his moustache twitched occasionally, his kisses. Taz was addicted to all of him. He was addicted too. To the way she talked, to her violent nature, to the way she defended herself, to her touches, and kisses. He just couldn't get enough of Taz.

**39. Older: **"Shit, Taz, you really got yourself banged up." Up said as he put bruise salve on Taz's black eye.

"It's not my fault," protested Taz "dat _hijo de puta _had it coming."

"Why, what'd he do?" Up asked. He finished putting the nasty-smelling cream on her eye and got up to wash his hands off.

Taz was silent until Up came back. "He called jou a cradle robber." She said quietly, her eyes downcast. She saw his fists clench. He got up suddenly, turned and punched the wall, leaving a reasonably sized hole where he hit. "Up, Up calm down. It's okay. Jou and I both know that's not true."

"I know, Taz, but I hate it. I hate the fact that I look twenty years older than you, even when it's only eight. I hate it that eight years of age difference between a couple is disgusting in our society. I hate it when we go out together, and you get called a gold-digger, and I get called a cradle robber."

"Up, I know it's hard dat everyone looks at us with disgust, but jou have to remember dat dey don't know all about us. Dey don't know what jou've been though. Jou just have to remember one thing. I love jou, Up."

He was considerably more relaxed when someone sent them looks in the halls after Taz's speech.

**53. Weapon:** Taz got her weapon of choice after she graduated. Up took her to the artillery locker, where an assortment of guns, from pistols to machine guns, were neatly hung up.

"Go ahead. Choose any one you want." Up told her, leaning against the door. Taz stood in the middle of the room, turning around and taking a look at all the different styles and sizes.

"What do jou think I should get?"

"It's not my choice. Go ahead and choose one, other graduates have to get their guns as well." Taz looked around again, pausing at a large, semi-automatic Zapper. She pulled it off the hooks and strapped it over her shoulder. Up nodded with approval. "Good choice for you."

"What did jou choose?" Taz asked curiously as they walked back to his quarters. She was running her fingers across her new gun, quite contented with it.

"Pretty much the opposite of you. I got a pair of handguns. It's always good to have a backup."

Taz's eyes flickered with doubt and moved up to Up's face. "Should I have picked a pair?"

"Naw, Taz, it's what you feel comfortable with. But if you really think you need a backup, I can give you something."

They got back to Up's room, where he disappeared for a few moments before returning, something small and black in his hand. "What is it?" Taz asked when Up held up the weapon.

"It's a switchblade. Won't do you much good against the robots, but it's good for other things."

Taz took it from him. "Thank jou. Where did jou get it from?"

"Was my father's. It was the last thing he gave to me before he died."

"Den I couldn't take it, it's jours!"

"Taz, it's fine. I never found any use for the damned thing anyways." Taz put the knife in her belt, happy with both of the weapons she chose that day.

**44. Pretend:** There was one instance where Taz and Up had to play pretend. The Admiral had asked them to go undercover as a couple for a few weeks when they found out that there were a group of humans that were teaming up with the robots. They were supposed to infiltrate the group, gain their trust, and then call the G.L.E.E to take them down. They were to be a couple that had just moved in near some of the people in the group, Alicia and Ethan Burlington.

"Dis is an _estupido_ idea." Taz grumbled as she was pulling on her blonde wig.

"Quiet, Taz, we have to stay undercover." Up led Taz into the house, which had been outfitted with all of the necessities. Two sheets of paper lay on the granite countertop. Taz picked up the one that had her fake name on it.

_Alicia Burlington_

_Age:23_

_Relationship Status: Newlywed to Ethan Burlington_

_Personality: Girly, wears a lot of dresses or skirts. Bubbly and social._

Taz groaned. Why did Admiral Albain have to make Alicia have the exact opposite personality of hers? She peered over at Up's sheet, seeing whether his was as bad. "_Dios muerto!_ Jours is actually good, Up. Read mine!" She shoved her paper into the Commander's face, waving it about. Up took the sheet from her, then snorted a few seconds later. Taz promptly punched him in the arm. They looked around the house, finding clothes already in the bedroom.

"We should probably go introduce ourselves to the traitors." Up said.

"Yeah... I better change into a dress." Taz said sarcastically. Up nodded and flopped down onto the couch. A few minutes later, Taz walked out in a light blue sundress. Up raised his eyebrows and swallowed.

"You look- wow." Up said. Taz blushed, but was scowling.

"I hate wearing dresses. I thought jou said dat when I joined the G.L.E.E. I would never have to wear a dress again."

"Well, I lied." Up said, offering his hand, which Taz promptly took. "You look lovely, _mi querida."_ They went over to the house next door, where they had been informed that a group of people were living. Up knocked on the door, and smiled pleasantly when a brown- haired man opened the door. "Hi! I'm Ethan, and this is my wife Alicia. We're new to the neighbourhood, and we heard that this is where the S.F.R.H.O meets."

"Yeah." The man said, looking around them shiftily "What's it to you?"

"We were thinking of joining. Do you think we could sit in on a couple of meetings, and see what it's all about?"

"Yeah, sure. Next meeting is in five minutes, you might as well come in now. I'm Derek, by the way." Derek talked quickly and gestured them inside. The place was rather nice, with a large brown couch, an open kitchen and three rooms towards the back of the house.

People started filtering in, and the ones who lived there came out of their rooms. "Who are the two newbies?" A tall redhead asked.

"I'm Alicia, this is my husband, Ethan." Taz introduced them to the group.

"That's nice, how long have you been married for?" A brunette woman asked as she sat down.

"Three months." Up said. The meeting went about as usual, Taz or Up putting in a comment or two once in a while, and in an hour the meeting was finished.

"You know, for a newly married couple, you don't really show much affection for each other." Someone remarked to them as they left.

"We're not very public." Taz explained hurriedly

"You should kiss." Derek said. "Just so we know you're a real couple." Taz turned to Up and circled her arms around his neck. Reaching up onto her tiptoes, her lips met his. After a moment, Up kissed her back, and she forgot where she was, and what was happening. Up wound his hands around her waist, bringing her closer to him. Taz moaned a little at the contact, prompting catcalls from the audience they forgot they had. They broke apart when they heard them, both blushing furiously. Up grabbed Taz's hand and they walked back toward their house, both still thinking of the kiss. It wouldn't happen again, would it? It was all just pretend, right?

**61. Settle:** "I'm so glad you came to the dance with me, Taz." Junior said as he led her by the arm into the cafeteria. The G.L.E.E was holding a dance for the recruits. Junior had asked Taz to go, and she thought he meant as friends, so of course she said yes. However, after he picked her up it became evident it wasn't meant as a friendly thing and Taz became more hostile.

"Meh, I had to settle for jou didn't I?" She said, venom in her voice. Junior looked hurt.

"Why, who would you rather have come with?" Junior asked, rather hurt. Taz didn't respond, but her mind wandered to a certain grey-haired man who was chaperoning the dance.

**84. Killing: **Up stood in the back, chaperoning the recruit's dance. He saw Taz walk in with Junior, and he felt a pain in his chest. He clenched his jaw. _You have no say over who she dates, you're her mentor, nothing more._ He thought. He watched as they danced, Junior's hands getting dangerously close to her bottom. He growled, and, doing his duty as chaperone, told him to move his hands away. Junior glared at him, but he saw Taz give him a grateful look. It was killing him, seeing Taz with someone else, especially someone as despicable as Junior. As the night went on, Junior was drinking and eventually left with some friends. Taz stood, alone, by the drinks table.

Up walked over to her "Would you like to dance?" He asked as he held out a hand. Taz rolled her eyes, but took his hand nonetheless. They spun around the dance floor, most of the people already gone. "You know, it was killing me seeing you with Junior." It just slipped out. He hadn't meant to say it, but now that he had, he needed to come up with an explanation.

"Oh? Why is dat?" Taz said, hoping he would tell her he liked her.

"He's just so sleazy, and he doesn't seem like your type." Up quickly covered up. Taz nodded sadly.

"It was killing me too. When he asked me, I thought he meant as friends." Taz said "When he picked me up, he tried to kiss me, but I pushed him off."

"Well, why did you stay with him then?"

"It's de nice thing to do." Taz shrugged. Like so many other things that night, it killed her that Up didn't feel the same way.

**16. Run: **Taz's feet pounded against the pavement, shoes forgotten from the get-go. She always ran away from her problems, and today she was taking that literally. Up had gone into a coma three days ago after he suffered a blow to the head from a robot in battle today. She visited him in the sick bay, but the nurses shooed her away. She was still running, going onto grass now and nearing the man-made lake. Rain had started to come down, but Taz didn't mind. She sat on a stone bench under a willow tree, and put her face in her hands. Up might die. She couldn't cope with that, he was her rock. She might seem strong to everyone during the day, but at night she was terrified, and Up was the only one that could ever make her feel better. Tears flowed down into her hands when someone tapped on her shoulder. She looked up and blue eyes looked into hers. She did a double take, and found that just the person she was thinking of was standing behind her.

"Up- jou're, jou're awake!" Taz cried, wiping the tears from her cheeks. She sprung up and hugged him. "I was worried that you wouldn't wake up." She whispered, her face in the crook of Up's neck. Up stroked her hair, comforting her as she let out the last of her tears. "How did jou wake up? De nurses thought jou were a goner."

"I apparently thought of something that I reminded me of what I had to live for, which, I guess woke me up."

"Oh? What did jou think of?" Taz asked, still slightly teary.

Up smiled and replied. "You."

**75. All I Ask: **Taz awoke from her bad dream abruptly. She padded over to Up's room. They had recently started living together, but on a friendship-only basis. It helped her cope with her nightmares, and he with his. She opened the door, knowing Up wouldn't mind. He was tossing and turning, mumbling incoherently.

"Mm, Taz! No- don't! Stay away from her!" Up flipped over just before Taz climbed into the bed with him. She curled her arms around his waist and he instantly relaxed. His eyes fluttered open and he yawned before talking. "Hey. You had another nightmare?"

Taz nodded and buried her face in his chest. "Jou were having one when I came in." She commented. A few minutes of silence passed, then Taz shifted to look the Commander in the eyes. "Will jou stay with me?"

Up looked puzzled "Of course, Taz."

"No, I mean always."

His eyes softened. "Yes. As long as you stay with me."

"Dat's all I ask."

**24. Bewitching:** One of the things Up loved about her was that she had no idea how bewitchingly beautiful she was.

"Have I ever told you how pretty you are?" Up said one day as they were watching _The Karate Kid_. Taz scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"I'm not." She said. "Jou have to be joking, because I am not pretty."

"You are!" Up protested. "You have such bewitching good looks." At this, Taz picked up her pillow and whacking him with it repeatedly. They watched most of the movie in silence, until Taz interrupted again.

"Jou really think I have 'bewitching good looks'?" She asked, shy all of a sudden. Up put his hand under her chin and made her look up.

"Of course I do." His blue eyes pierced into her brown ones before leaning towards her. Their lips met and the movie was forgotten.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: I hope you all enjoyed that chapter! I know that the ending bit in Pretend when he asks them to kiss was a little far-fetched, but they kissed, so no complaining about that. Pretend will also be continued in Believable, which is in the next chapter. Also, If I don't update for a while, it's probably because I'm being lazy or I'm on Tumblr instead of writing. **


	7. Chapter 7

**98. Little Girl: **Up saw a girl with elbow-length black hair hanging from a rope by her waist. She was shouting Spanish phrases and struggling to get free. Autobots surrounded her; two had been dismantled and were lying on the ground. One of the ones still standing held a large stick that it was swinging about. Just as it was about to hit her with it, Up fired his Zapper and blew it's head off, quickly followed by the other two. He ran towards the tree, which had ignited in artificial fire from the Zapper blasts, and quickly cut down the girl. She had a bloody lip, black eye, various scratches on her arms and legs, her face was darkened with ashes and a gash in her side. She winced. Up could tell that she'd lost a lot of blood.

"What's your name?" He asked hurriedly, looking over his shoulder for signs of more robots. She responded, but so quietly he wasn't sure that he heard correctly. "Taz?" He confirmed. She hesitated before nodding.

"Who are jou?" She asked in a heavily accented voice.

"I'm Lieutenant Up," he responded, then offered to carry her back to the ship.

"No! I am not _una nina _or _un bebe_!" She limped the first three steps before falling on Up's outstretched arm. "_Gracias."_ They walked back to the Starship together, Up supporting her the whole way. The little girl and the Starship Ranger.

**81. Dramatic:** Everyone knew that Taz had a flair for the dramatic, but no one ever thought that she would audition for the Academy play. She got the main role, too. The play was written by a student and took place in the 1900's. Unfortunately for Taz, she had to wear a heavy dress, and due to her short, choppy hair, a wig.

"Ugh, I hate dis dress! It is _estupido._" Taz complained on the day of dress rehearsal.

"It's not that bad, Taz." Up, who was in the play as Taz's love interest commented as he adjusted his tie. "You actually look kind of pretty in it." He said before thinking.

Taz blushed before responding. "Shut up, _idiota, _and tie jour tie." Taz placed the wide-brimmed hat onto the dark curls of her wig before walking onto the stage. "Okay, Will, how do I look?" She asked the director.

"You look perfect." Will said, glancing up at her. Up came out after her, putting the flat hat over his greying hair "Okay, so take it from Act 1, scene 3."

"Doctor Hill, What are you doing out in town this fine day?" She said in a near-perfect imitation of Up's Southern accent.

"I came to buy some rolls for ma dinner." Up spoke in his own accent, only slightly more exaggerated.

"Oh, are you having people over?" Taz did her best to look disappointed.

"Naw, but I needed some bread anyways. Say, Miss Shaw, you wouldn't want to come over to my house for dinner would ya?"

"I would love to, Doctor." Taz said, pretending to be flattered. Up offered her his arm, which she looped into her own.

"CUT!" Will said into his amplifier. "That was really good! Taz, you should work some more with the Commander to get your accent just right. Okay, now let's move to the scene after the dinner."

Up and Taz shared a glance. This was the scene that they were both dreading and anticipating at the same time. This was the scene that they kissed in. They got into positions and began their lines.

"That was a lovely dinner, Doctor."

"Please, call me Jeremiah."

"Alright Jeremiah, then you can call me Liz." They shifted together slightly on the couch, looking at each other. "Listen I-" Taz said at the same time Up began to talk.

"Liz, I-" He stopped, then started again, Taz permitting him to talk "Listen, Liz. I've liked you for a long time... and I-" Taz cut him off with a kiss before he got a chance to finish the sentence. It was a simple kiss, one that left both of them blushing but they pulled apart too quickly and were both left wanting more.

"CUT!" Will yelled. "That was okay, but more dramatic! I need feeling, emotion! Do it again!" Taz and Up practised that scene over and over, neither of them minding in the slightest.

**10. Soulful: **Up couldn't stop staring into her eyes in the Drop Pod when they were going up back to the Starship. They were full of emotion, so colourful, so soulful, and the pink of her dress complimented them perfectly. He didn't stop until Taz spoke. "What jou staring at?" After which he quickly averted his eyes and only stole covert glances.

**62. Treat: **For a the last year in Taz's schooling career, it was a rare treat to see Up. He was off on short missions now that she didn't need taking care of as much. He was also training new recruits, leaving little time to hang out with Taz.

"Hey Taz, do you think we could watch _The Karate Kid _tonight?" Up asked, surprising her as she worked out.

"Yeah, sure." Taz said briefly before turning back to her punching bag. Even though she hardly reacted to Up's simple invitation, inside her heart was screaming. It had been months since they had done anything together, and she had been yearning for some alone time with the Commander. Two hours later, she knocked on the door to his room.

"Come in!" Up called from inside. He stood at the counter waiting for the microwave popcorn to pop.

"Hey jou!" Taz bounced into the kitchen, uncharacteristically happy to be spending time with Up again. She grinned enthusiastically at him, excited for their movie night. Up smiled right back, surprised to see Taz this happy. The popcorn had finished popping and the pair sat down on the couch. Up wrapped his arm around Taz, who was curled up into his side. They watched the movie as usual, occasionally starting a short conversation.

At the end of the movie, Taz sat up and stretched. "Jou know, Up? Dis was a real treat."

**11. Broken:** After Up was cut in half, Taz immediatly noticed changes. His voice was no longer as commanding and rough, it held a smooth quality that hadn't been present before. He looked far older than he did before the incident, when he only had flecks of grey hair, now all of it was grey. He seemed sweeter, less a hardened soldier and more a charming young man. At first, Taz didn't mind, but when they went on their next mission, she was disappointed in him. He stayed in his room and cried for ages. He forgot to give people orders, and basically let Taz do all of his work. That was when Taz realized that he wasn't the same Up. He was broken.

**60. Reap: **Once upon a time, Taz made a decision that would affect the rest of her life. She and Up could have a romantic connection, they could both feel it. However, she didn't want a relationship of any kind. She had been hurt before, and didn't want it to happen again. So she asked to be transferred out of his squadron. She didn't see him until many years later. He was married to one of the nurses in his ships' medical bay, they had a child and he was one of the most successful Commanders in GLEE history. She immediatly began to reap everything that she did, realizing that she really wanted to be a part of Up's life. But it was too late.

**79. Terrible: **"I'll miss jou, Up." Taz confessed, her eyes downcast as Up boarded the Starship _Comet._ He was going on his first mission since Taz had enlisted, and Taz wasn't prepared. She was used to having Up there to help her with calculus, to watch _The Karate Kid_ with her, to keep the nightmares away.

"Hey there," He started, lifting her chin with one hand. "don't be sad, I'll be back before you know it. Now just remember, always get back up and don't let the bullies pick on you too much." Up gave her a half smile before enveloping her in a hug. He kissed her forehead and walked on board.

It had been six months since that day. Up was supposed to be back within the next few weeks, but something terrible happened. "And we are here to regrettably inform you that all communication with the Starship_ Comet_ has been lost." Admiral Albain said, straight faced during a press conference. Camera bulbs flashed and the Admiral walked away from the podium.

Taz's heart had dropped into her stomach. Up wouldn't be coming back. He'd never see her graduate, they'd never watch _The Karate Kid_ together, she would never hear that warm Alabama accent ever again. He couldn't be dead, he just _couldn't_. Taz could feel it, he was still alive, adrift in space somewhere. She could feel the tears pricking at her eyelids and was about to let them fall until she remembered Up's words the day he left. _Always get back up_. He had said. Her tears immediatly stopped as a plan formed in her mind. Now hopefully it would work...

Exactly one week later, Taz was set. She had gathered a mismatched crew of Starship Rangers and trainees that cared about Up just as much as she did. One was a Lieutenant-Commander, so he had access to a small Starship. They had all geared up and were ready for the mission "Okay _idiotas_," Taz began "jou all know dat dis is a risky mission. Hell, for all we know, Up and de others might not even be alive." It pained her to even say that, but it was the reality. Taz continued her pep talk, and they got into the Starship _Estrella_.

"Jim! What is dat?" Taz cried three weeks later. On the Radar screen a large blob had just come into view. Jim twisted a few knobs, trying to focus on the picture.

"It appears to be a Starship."

A genuine smile broke onto Taz's face. "Alena! Move dis ship toward it. I think we found dem."

It had been seven months since he was dispatched on this mission. Seven months since he had seen Earth's yellow sun, seven months since he'd seen Taz. "Lieutenant!" an ensign called. "Come look at the view screen." Up walked over to it. A Starship was approaching.

"Jameson! Prepare the ship for boarding!" Up cried to a younger member of the crew. He and a few other ensigns began prepping to board the approaching ship. About twenty minutes later, a robotic voice rang over the ship.

"Starship Estrella now docking." The entire crew gathered around the loading bay to see their rescuers. The bay doors opened revealing Taz and the crew she had gathered.

Up was the first thing Taz saw. She gasped and ran towards him, tackling him to the ground. "Up! Jou're alive!" She was ecstatic. Her arms were thrown around his neck, and she was kissing his cheek repeatedly with voraciousness. He grinned and hugged her until she could hardly breathe. The entire crew of Up's ship crammed onto the small one that Taz had brought and they headed back towards the G.L.E.E. Headquarters. Taz and Up were seated together, enjoying each others' company.

Up leaned over to Taz's ear. "I missed you _mi quierda," _he whispered. Taz smiled, the second one in months. "What was it like when I was gone?"

Taz turned to him, the truth in her eyes. "Terrible."

**42. Lust:** Up's mouth joined with Taz's for the hundredth time that night. As they kissed, Taz coaxed his mouth open and intertwined her tongue with his. They broke apart, but Up continued kissing down her neck as Taz tried to regulate her heavy breathing. Both of their heads were thick with clouds of lust, and Taz started to grab at the hem of his shirt, lifting it over his head. They continued with their heated kissing. Taz's shirt was removed; Up was seeing a whole new side of her tonight. It wasn't until Taz fingered Up's belt buckle that they slowed down. Up broke away, panting heavily.

"Taz, you have no idea how much I want this, Dead God, do want it, but we should... we should wait." Up said. He closed his eyes and looked away, awaiting the slap or punch that was inevitable. It didn't come. He looked up to see Taz sitting atop his knees, her breathing laboured.

"Jou're right, Up." She said, nodding. All the usual fire was gone from her eyes, replaced with an unusual tenderness. "I guess we should get to know each other first." She said cheekily before curling into his side. Up smiled and kissed her temple. He was glad that their relationship wasn't one that was driven by lust.

**31. On My Mind:** Taz was everywhere. Up couldn't go a minute without thinking about her. He kept letting his mind drift off when he was supposed to be supervising new recruits, only to be snapped back into real life when a dodgeball hit him in the head. He hadn't seen Taz for days, and could only remember her eyes, her scent and his skin against hers. She was in the same predicament, trying to get trainees to do well on a Tactical Mission Simulator, but she kept zoning out, thinking of her last encounter with Up. They had planned to have a _Harry Potter_ movie marathon later that night, which would be undoubtedly followed by watching _The Karate Kid_. So, with that movie marathon in mind, Taz walked to Up's quarters and knocked on the door.

"Come on in!" He called. When she walked into the living room, she was scooped up into a big hug, lifting her straight off her feet. "I hate being away from you for so long." He whispered into her ear. "You were on my mind all day."

"You were on my mind all day as well, _mi amor_."

**26. Languid: **Taz groaned and hit her head against the desk again. There was no way that she could memorize all these words before tomorrow. Up, who was flipping through channels on the TV, looked over his shoulder at the younger ranger.

"You okay Taz, or do you need a little help?" He asked.

Taz looked at him sheepishly. She had rejected his offer of help earlier this afternoon. "Help, please." She mumbled into her chest. Up chuckled and walked over to the desk where she was working.

"Aw, Taz, these ain't so hard!" He exclaimed.

"Oh yeah? What does..." she snatched the list from his hand "Insipid mean?" She asked, pursing her lips at him.

"Easy! Without interesting qualities, bland."

"How de hell do jou remember dat?" Taz asked, completely perplexed.

"I think of something that has to do with the word. How would you describe that lamp over there?" Up explained, gesturing to the plain G.L.E.E. Issued lamp sitting on the corner of the desk.

Taz shrugged. "Boring, I guess."

"Or you could say..."

"Insipid!" Taz cried, understanding Up's method. "Dat's amazing, Up! How about garrulous?"

"Well, what's it mean?"

"Excessively talking in a rambling manner, especially about trivial matters." Taz read off the sheet.

"Now who do we know that rambles a lot?" Up asked sarcastically.

"February." Taz chuckled. "So dat means dat February talks garrulously."

"Any other words you were having trouble with?" Up asked after finding things to relate to twenty other things on her list.

"Just one more: languid." Taz said. "It means 'lacking in vigour or vitality.'" She looked up at Up who was thinking.

A mischievous look crossed his face before answering. "You know how you're like before you have your morning coffee? Use that for languid." He ducked and narrowly dodged a punch before running away laughing.

"_Hijo de puta!_" Taz cried after him, even though she was laughing too. On her exam the next day, the final question was 'Use the word languid in a sentence.' She fought back a chuckle as she wrote on her sheet: _I am languid before I have my morning coffee._

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hey there all you Starkids! So... if you wished for a new chapter of this story yesterday at 11:11, your wish came true! But I do aplogise for taking such a long time to update, I've been on Tumblr. It's so very addicting. Also I went to the SPACE tour! It was so much fun. ^.^ My friend Reva helped me with Terrible, so I'd like to thank her for that. **


	8. Chapter 8

**2. Eternal: **A lot of people on the Starship thought that Taz and Up's relationship wouldn't last for more than a few weeks. However, they didn't know that Taz and Up had been best friends since she was fifteen and he was twenty-three and that even if they did break up, which was highly unlikely, they would remain best friends no matter what. Even after those few weeks, there were still people that doubted their relationship, despite the fact that rumours had been floating around the ship since the day Up brought Taz aboard. What they didn't understand was that their love was eternal, and would last forever.

**14. Pauses: **This was the first time they watched the _Harry Potter_ movies. Taz had read the books when she was younger. Up, having been raised in a orphanage, had not. This resulted in pausing the movie several times throughout the night.

"So, wait, who's that again?" Up asked while Taz paused the movie with an exasperated sigh.

"_Dat._ Is Hagrid." Taz replied pointedly.

"And is he a wizard or not?"

"Can jou just watch de damn movie?"

Up grumbled unintelligibly and settled further into the couch, his arm around Taz. After a few minutes without interruption, Up had to ask a question again, making Taz pause the film. "I thought wizards used wands?"

Taz shot him a puzzled look. "Dey do."

"But Hagrip just gave that kid a pigs' tail with a pink umbrella!"

"_Uno:_ It's Hagrid. And _dos_: His wand is inside de umbrella, jou _idiota!_" Taz pushed him to the side, frustrated with his lack of understanding. "It's not dat hard to get!"

"Well I never read them when I was a kid. I have no idea what's going on." Up lied. He could actually follow the plot pretty easily, Taz was just cute when she got frustrated. Five minutes passed before Up started speaking again. "Hey Taz, why does..." He chuckled when she paused the film again and shot him another look.

**25. Vehement: **"No, Up. Jou are not going into battle without me." Taz had been injured recently, leaving her with a broken wrist and broken ribs. Her wrist had since healed, but was still very tender, and her ribs were bandaged. Up slammed his coffee mug on the counter, spilling some out of it.

"Dead-goddamit Taz, no you're not! You're too fragile to go into battle yet." As soon as the word 'fragile' escaped his mouth, he knew it was a mistake.

Taz looked up at him, a rage burning in her eyes. "Fragile? Jou think I'm too_ fr__á__gil_ to fight? Are jou forgetting dat I took down three _robotos _when I was _fifteen_? With a dead-goddamned rake? I am going to go into dat battle, and dere is nothing jou can do to stop me." Taz was vehement. When she had her mind made up, there was no stopping her. But Up was adament.

"No, Taz. I won't allow it and neither would the people in the Medi-bay."

Taz scowled at him. "I really don't care about de Medi-bay people. Dey always say dat I need more rest den I do."

"But you do care what I say." Up countered. "And even if you didn't I'm your commanding officer, so it wouldn't matter." Taz glowered at him and Up softened his tone. "I know you want to fight, but you're not ready."

"But I am re-"

Up cut her off. "Please Taz. Just sit this one out. For me?" His blue eyes were so pleading, Taz hardly had a choice in the matter after that.

**95. Shadows:** Junior lurked in the shadows, spying on his crew. He had noticed that Megagirl was still on about loving Tootsie, Krayonder seemed to have a thing for Specs, and Bug wanted to tell February something. However, the most interesting development was between Up and Taz.

"Taz, c'mon."

"No, Up." The small Mexican whirled around to face the older man. "Jou are not de same Up dat rescued me all dose years ago."

"But Taz, I miss you."

Her expression softened and she bit her lip. "I miss jou too Up. But jou're not de same."

"I am Taz, I really am. Trust me."

"Really? Den do something dat old Up wouldn't hesitate to do."

It took him a few seconds, but Up finally moved. With two long strides he was by her side, looping his arm around her waist. He leaned down and captured her lips with his, finally letting himself do what he had been dreaming of for ages.

Taz was stunned. She knew that if the old Up felt like this, he wouldn't have even paused before kissing her. But somehow, it seemed as though Up was only doing this because he had gone soft, that he didn't think of her this way before that. She kissed him back nonetheless, relishing his chapped lips against hers. Their lips warred for several minutes and it wasn't until Up bit on her lip that she realized what she was doing. Taz pushed him away.

There was hurt in his eyes. "Jou are not de old Up." She said with a shake of her head before spinning around and running off. Up just stood there, shocked that she had let the kiss go on for that long, and what had happened afterwards. _Shit_. He thought. _How can I live with myself if I don't ever get her?_

**46. Disaster:** What happened that day on Qo'nos was a disaster. They both wish it never happened. Taz can still remember it like it was yesterday though.

Taz and Up stood back to back, shooting the robots whenever they came close. They seperated for a moment as Taz took out an Autobot approaching on the southern horizon. As she was shooting, Up noticed that Optimus Prime was coming up behind her. Just in time, Up jumped in front of her, the robot grabbing him instead. Taz turned, expecting to see her partner, but instead saw a vast expanse of ground and destroyed robots. She looked up, and there he was being held spread-eagle in the air, Optimus Prime aiming his circular buzz saw at his head. She tried shooting at the robot, but her shots either missed, or hit his protective armour. Taz winced as she heard the crunch of bone and closed her eyes as she felt the spatter of blood on her face. As soon as the robot dropped him, Taz fired her Zapper, hitting Optimus Prime in the neck and blowing his head off. She ran over to where Up was lying, separated into two halves. Tears streamed down her face as she hunched over his dead body.

A hand rested on Taz's shoulder. "You okay? You looked upset." Up commented as he sat down next to her.

A small smile graced her face as she replied. "It's nothing." She wished she had known that Up was going to survive, it would have saved her a world of grief. But at the same time, that disaster had brought them even closer, if that was possible.

**82. Panic: **One morning, Taz rolled over to find an empty bed. Panic set in; she almost always woke before Up did. She got out of bed and walked around the small quarters they shared, not finding him anywhere. The shower wasn't running, and there was no note. Without even bothering to get out of her pyjamas, she started running through the halls to the cafeteria. When she burst in, there were a few wolf-whistles from a couple of the other Lieutenants, but Taz ignored them. She ran outside, sprinting towards the lake. She finally found him sitting on the stone bench beneath their willow tree. When Up caught sight of her, he got up off the bench and swung his arms around her.

"What's the matter Taz?"

"Woke up... after a nightmare... jou weren't dere. I panicked. I needed to find jou." Taz wrapped her arms around Up, needing to make sure he was there. "Don't do dat. Stay in de apartment until I wake up, okay _idiota?_" Little tears were forming in her eyes before she leaned in and kissed him.

"It's fine Taz. I'll always be here for ya." Up replied when they broke apart.

**74. Ballad:** Up was drunk. Very drunk. Taz was almost completely sober. Now usually, this was the other way around, but today was the fifteenth anniversary of the day that Up's family was killed. So he drowned his sorrows in whiskey and beer.

"Hey Taz, I'm gonna go sing some karaoke, you wanna come with?" His words were slurred and his mannerisms pointed to the obvious.

"No." Taz replied simply.

"But Tazzie! I want ya to sing with me!"

"No, Up. I don't sing."

"Ya do when yer drunk." He mumbled

"I'm not drunk, though. Jou are. So go sing if jou want to."

Up walked onto the karaoke stage and grabbed the microphone. The beginning of a cheesy love ballad from the movie _Grease_ started playing. Up started singing, rather awfully. As he continued, Taz buried her face in her hands until she couldn't take it anymore. She finally got up and dragged Up off the stage, much to his dismay.

"What're ya doing Taz, I was singing!"

"_Si._ And now jou are going to go to bed, come with me." Taz pulled him towards her room. She typed in the passcode and they walked in. Taz flicked on one of the lights.

"Taz, you're really pretty."

The Mexican girl blushed. "_Idiota_, jou don't know what jou're saying. Jou're drunk."

"Naw, Taz, no! It's true. You're beautiful."

Taz scowled and rolled her eyes, despite the fact that it was warming her heart. She knew she couldn't believe him though, he was intoxicated after all. "C'mon Up, get into bed." He climbed into Taz's bed as she pulled the covers over him. As his eyelids drooped into sleep, he mumbled one final thing.

"Taz, I love you."

**64. Least:** "Up I can't believe that jou got me an offer for Commander!" Taz exclaimed after Admiral Albain spoke with Taz in her office.

"It's the least I could do. You made me back into what I used to be, not that damned softie that I was." Up said with a shrug. "So, when's your first mission? Are you excited to be commanding for once?" While on the outside, he tried to be excited for Taz, and even though he did recommend her for the position, he wanted her to still be his Lieutenant. The one at his side at all times.

"Never." Taz said in reply to the first question.

"What? Why?" Up was shocked. He thought that Taz would jump at the opportunity to yell at more people.

"Because, _idiota,_ I'd rather be jour Lieutenant. Rising up in de GLEE ranks is de least of my worries. I'd rather stay wherever jou are." Taz explained with a tender look on her face.

Up's face broke into a warm grin as he enveloped the small girl in a hug.

She tried to wiggle out of his grass with no avail "Let me go, Up! Jou're not going all _d__é__bil_ on me again are jou?"

He finally released her. "Naw, I'm just happy you pick me over the stupid position."

"If jou didn't want me to take it, den why did jou recommend me for it?"

Up shrugged. "I dunno. I figured jou might want a break, or a chance to yell at more people."

"Jou're de only reason I joined de GLEE, Up. Why on Earth would I do anything without jou?

**57. Haze:** Taz's emotions were in a haze. Up was her mentor, teacher, superior officer. Yet he was also her best friend, the person she felt closest to, and the person... she was attracted to? No, that couldn't happen. But no matter how hard she tried, she could stop her eyes from roaming to Up's form when he took off his shirt to work out. She pushed the feelings back as a heat rose up in her and tore her eyes away.

Across the gym, Up felt the same way. He couldn't keep his thoughts straight, and he was usually lucky that his words didn't come out as a garbled mess when he talked to Taz after a workout. When she was still wearing the sweat-soaked tank top that clung to her skin. He shook his head as his cheeks started to heat up and went back to punching his punching bag. But as he continued his workout, he caught his eyes drifting back towards the petite girl, watching the way here muscles were tightening as she lifted the weights or started a kick. Dead-god, he was falling for a girl eight years his junior, and he was okay with it.

**38. Health:** "Okay everyone, grab a dummy and get practising." Up called through the hall. It was his turn to teach the emergency health unit. He hadn't seen Taz yet, and while it was entirely possible that she skipped, this material was crucial for her final exam. After the class was over, Up found Taz in the gym.

"Hey Taz," He started "You missed the health session today."

Taz stopped hitting the bag in front of her and looked at Up. "Shit. Dat was today?"

Up chuckled slightly before responding. "Yes it was. Do you want me to teach you the things we learned?"

Taz looked at him shyly. "_Si._ If it wouldn't be too much trouble."

"No problem." The pair walked back to the Health room, only to find that it was locked. "Shit. The dummies for CPR are in there."

"Don't jou have a key?"

"No."

"Damn. When's de test on dis unit?"

"Tomorrow."

"Well den, it's settled. I'm fucked."

"No kiddin'." Up said, sighing. Suddenly he snapped his fingers. "Come back to my quarters and I'll teach you."

Taz didn't question him. They ran back to his room. Up cleared off the bed and lied down on it.

"Wait- what?" Taz asked, confused as to what he was doing.

"You're gonna have to use me as the dummy." Up explained.

Taz bit her lip, blushing at the thought of putting her lips on Up. Not that she didn't want to, but it would be so awkward.

Up looked at her expectantly. "So tilt my head back and pinch my nose." Taz did as she was told. The next instructions came in a pinched, nasally voice because Taz was blocking air from his nose. "Okay now press your hands on my chest." Again, Taz obliged, putting her hands above his stomach. "No, here." Up corrected her, sliding her hands up to his sternum. "Now thirty chest compressions."

Taz pushed on his chest thirty times, then waited expectantly for more directions. "Okay, now check my airway for any signs of blockage." Taz looked over his throat and chest before looking at him again. "Okay now give me two rescue breaths."

Taz blushed slightly, but followed the instructions. She sealed her mouth over his and gave one breath, watching his chest rise.

When Up felt Taz's lips on his, his stomach dropped. He knew it was just CPR training, but Dead-God, he could get used to that feeling. She breathed into him again, and then pulled away.

"Is dat it?" Taz asked. Her heart was racing, and her cheeks were far more pink than usual.

Up sat up and ran his hands over his face. His colouring mirrored Taz's, and he seemed rather flustered.

"Yeah. Good job."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hi there! I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Again, sorry it's kind of late, tumblr has distracted me yet again, and I've been ushering for my schools' production of RENT.**


	9. Chapter 9

**86. Waste:** A flash grenade went off, knocking Up back almost fifty feet. Taz looked up from behind the slab of broken concrete she was using for cover. "_Dios muerto!_" Forgetting her cover, she ran out beside Up, swinging her Zapper behind her back. She knelt down next to him. He wasn't moving. Before she could stop them, tears began to roll out of her eyes. She couldn't believe it. Up was gone. She closed her eyes. Below her, Up blinked repeatedly. He saw Taz with tears falling down her face. He realized that she looked quite pretty, her face was peaceful with none of the usual frown lines marking her face. He snapped up when he remembered they were still in a war zone. Taz looked up, startled. Up was standing again, offering a hand to help her up with.

"Don't waste your tears on me. Even if I were dead." He pulled her from the ground, giving a short wink. "You should check breathing and heartbeat before assuming I'm dead. It'll take a lot more than a damn flash grenade to get me."

"Right." Taz breathed, wiping the last of her tears off her face.

**92. Dust:** "Do I have to?" Taz whined for the hundredth time that day.

"Taz, you lost the bet. You said you'd clean my rooms." Up replied with a smirk. He sat on the couch, eating popcorn and watching TV. Taz stood beside him, in a pair of tattered sweats and a tank top. She held a duster in her hand, arms crossed. "And you're lucky I only asked you to dust. I could've had you clean the bathroom."

Taz rolled her eyes and hit him lightly with her feather duster before walking away, muttering Spanish under her breath. Up was left in peace for a little while until Taz tried to dust everything that was near the TV. It was okay at first, she was just off to the side of it but then she started to move in front of it, and that's when Up started having a problem.

"Taz could you just move a little... you're blocking the TV." Taz gave no response. "Taz... Taz... TAZ!"

She finally turned. "What?"

"Can you move?" Up asked, rather frustrated at this point.

A mischievous glint came about in Taz's eye. "No, _senor._ Jou asked me to clean jour rooms, and if I'm going to have to do it, I may as well do it properly."

Up rolled his eyes. "You're relieved of your duties." He said, then motioned her over to the couch. "Now come sit over here and watch some TV."

A smile broke out on her face before joining Up on the couch. Her plan had worked.

**69. Strive:** Taz always strived to be the best in her class. She would arrive at Up's door at the earliest hours of the morning, unintentionally causing Up to be slightly uncomfortable due to her outfit of a sports bra and skimpy shorts. He would look basically anywhere except for her. Up would use his key to get them in early and they would train until the gym opened for the morning, when they would go for breakfast. This was repeated for nearly a year, until Taz finally made it to the top of her training class.

**25. Jubilant:** Taz positively adored Christmas. Every year, she insisted that she and Up have a tree in their shared rooms. Though she often got angry at carollers, (she claimed they 'ruined the songs') she genuinely enjoyed the season. Even though she liked it, everyone thought it was extremely out of character for her to be quite this happy.

"Taz, you seem awfully jubilant today, did something exciting happen?" Specs asked. Everyone heard February asking what 'jubilant' meant, but no one paid her any attention except Bug.

"Hm?" Taz looked up from her breakfast, a glazed look in her eyes and a tiny smile on her face. "No, nothing special."

Specs and Krayonder shared a look. "Are you sure Taz, you seem awful happy for a Monday morning."

"Are jou trying to ruin my good mood? It's just cause it's Christmas, alright?" She glared at the group before picking at her food. When she lifted her hand up though, February screamed.

"OMDG! Is that an engagement ring?" She yelled.

"Keep jour damn voice down or I will shoot jou." Taz responded with a fire in her eyes, even though she was blushing. After February sat down and everyone in the mess hall went back to their business, everyone at their table looked at her expectantly. "Yes, jou _idiotas_. It's an engagement ring. Up proposed last night." She explained quickly before eating some of her eggs.

Everyone smiled and congratulated Taz. February began gushing about wedding plans as soon as she was done freaking out. By this time, Taz's good mood had completely disappeared and she picked up her half finished breakfast, throwing it in the trash.

"Where are you going Tazzy? We have so many plans to discuss!" February protested.

"I'm going to talk to Up about eloping." She replied as she walked out of the mess hall.

**91. Skill: **Up was very skilled at Scrabble. Because he didn't get a television until he was reassigned at the GLEE, he and Taz used to play board games. Scrabble or Clue were usually their favourites, and after some slight confusion, Taz became extremely good at Scrabble. This surprisingly came in handy at one point during her life.

"Goldman, please let me switch crews with you!" Taz pleaded to the highly intelligent Lieutenant. Lieutenant Goldman had been assigned to a crew with Commander Up. Taz would be fine with this, but it was a mission that would last for over five years and she wasn't willing to have Up leave for that long. Goldman was an arrogant woman, and thought her intellect was superior to all other beings.

Smugly, she turned. "Okay, Taz. If you can beat me at Scrabble, I'll switch crews with you." She said with a smile.

"Deal." Taz said quickly. They agreed that it would be tomorrow over lunch.

"You can do it Taz, you're the best Scrabble player I've ever seen. Aside from me, of course." Up joked as they walked into the cafeteria. Taz shot him a dirty look, but she was smiling slightly.

"Ready to lose, Taz?" Goldman taunted.

Taz scowled and took her seat, grabbing a letter. "E." She said.

Goldman pursed her lips and chose a letter from the bag. "You go first."

Taz grinned and placed all her tiles on the board. "Adapted." she announced. "Twelve points with no bonuses, but I have a triple word score so thirty-six plus fifty for using all of my letters. Eighty-six points for me." Taz looked at her with a slightly arrogant glint in her eye.

The game was neck in neck, and Ensign Brunsman was tallying up all of the points. "The winner is... Taz." He announced. Up and Taz jumped up immediatly and hugged.

"Congratulations Taz. You are truly... skilled." Goldman said, shaking her hand.

**7. Repeat:** There was one point that Taz and Up got into a huge fight. Taz had a boyfriend who Up didn't like. His name was Ray. He was arrogant, lazy and downright annoying. Taz, however, didn't see it.

"Up, stop complaining! Jou aren't de one dating him." Taz said for the billionth time during what seemed like their hundredth fight that week.

"Taz, I don't have a good feeling about him." Up retorted, trying to convince Taz that her boyfriend was bad news.

"Jou know what Up? Maybe jou should just stay out of my business for a while." Taz screeched before she stormed out of the room.

And so he did. It was two months before Taz and Up talked again, and it was killing them inside. So when Up heard a faint knocking at his door late one Saturday night he scrambled out of bed, not caring he was only in a pair of boxer shorts, knowing only Taz would dare disturb him this late.

When he opened the door, Taz stood there in a blue minidress, a pair of high heels in her hand and tears running down her face. Up's instinctive reaction was to envelop her into a huge hug, which he did as he guided her into his room.

"Taz, what happened?" Up asked, his brow creased with worry.

Taz sniffled a few times before answering. "Ray told me he only wanted me to have sex with him. I pushed de _cabron_ away from me and kicked him in de shins, but he came after me. I had to knock him out to get him to leave me alone." She sobbed again "I ran straight here. Ray is a giant ass."

"Hey, hey it's okay Taz." Up rubbed soothing circles on her back and hugged her tighter. "You can file a report with Admiral Albain, and you'll never have to see that bastard again." He kissed the top of her head. "Now, whaddaya say we throw on The Karate Kid and it'll make you feel better?"

Taz smiled and nodded. After the movie, she felt much better. "Jou know Up, jou were right. Ray is a worthless layabout dat should be ignored." She gave him a slight grin.

"Hang on, could you just repeat that first bit?"

"I said JOU WERE RIGHT, _idiota_, now don't make me say it again, or I might not watch any more movies with jou." She joked, kissing his cheek when she saw him grin.

**67. Correct:** For the longest time, Up was always trying to correct Taz's grammar. "No, the words go in this order!" He would protest. "Try pronouncing your y's better." After a while he just stopped. Taz didn't know why, nor did she care. But the truth was that Up realized that Taz was speaking correctly all this time, but in her own way; the one that made his knees quiver and his heart melt. She was right all along.

**87. Passion: **There was a certain passion in Taz and Up's relationship that seemed to be lacking in all the others on the ship. They had known each other for so long, they knew all of each other's quirks, and what was good and bad. For example, Up knew that Taz was fine with kissing on the lips in public, but cheek was out of the question. And Taz knew that Up loved it when she ran her fingers through his hair, but hated it when she touched his moustache. And occasionally there were certain days that they just couldn't help themselves

"Guys, um, we're trying to eat here." Krayonder said. Taz and Up were having one of _those_ days, where they couldn't keep their hands off each other. Their lunches forgotten, Taz was practically sitting in Up's lap, and they were leaning so far backwards it was almost horizontal. Everyone averted their eyes as Up began kissing down her neck and she was running her fingers through his hair.

"Dudes, get a room!" Ensign Stepien yelled from across the cafeteria. For once, Taz didn't threaten to stab whoever yelled, they just got up and left.

"Buggy, how come we're never that passionate?" February whined

**6. Believable: **After the kiss, Up went for a walk. A long, long walk. He tried to clear his head of what just happened, but he wanted it back. He wanted to feel the electricity of Taz's lips against his again, her lean body pushed against him. He shuddered just thinking about it.

Back at the house, Taz was thinking about the same things. About how good it felt to have Up's strong arms wrapped around her body, lips pressed together. She groaned in frustration. She wasn't supposed to feel this way about her best friend. Up came home about an hour later.

"So Taz, I was thinking... about the kiss." Taz gulped. She wondered if he thought it was totally inappropriate and hated he for it. "And I was thinking that... it wasn't quite believable enough, so maybe we should practice a little, in case we have to do it again." He snapped his eyes shut as soon as he was done talking. He didn't mean to say that, it just slipped out.

Luckily for him, Taz chuckled and agreed. They spent the rest of the night 'practice-kissing.'

**48. Nimble:** Taz had very nimble fingers. This came in handy when Up's pants got a tear up the side of them. One of the Ensigns had a needle and thread, but didn't know how to sew. So Up got Taz to do it. The only problem was that Up had no other pants to wear during this process. So that is how they got to this, Taz sitting on the floor of the base, sewing his pants together and Up sitting on the couch, holding a pillow to cover himself.

"Up, how do jou get jourself into dese situations?" Taz tutted, glancing up at him.

"I don't know Taz, they just ripped." Up grumbled. "And I don't know why all of my other pants are in the wash."

Taz handed him his pants back, finally finished. "Dere. Go change, jou big _idiota_." Truthfully, Taz loosened the seams in his pants and threw the rest in the wash. She just wanted an excuse to embarrass him.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Hey there everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I'm not dead, and here is your new chapter! Now, I got an anonymous review from Galinda33 who said that I didn't put in 'Believable.' No, I didn't. I apologize for that, but I wrote part of it down at school, and then that sheet of paper got lost. But it's here in this chapter!**


	10. Chapter 10

**89. Drought: **"Up, I'm so damn thirsty." Taz said as she plopped down next to up on the couch in his quarters. "Why is dere no damn water on dis ship?"

"Taz, I told you. We're in an area of this galaxy that has no constant water source. Our tanks ran out, and we're not permitted to refill until we get out of this area." Up explained. He rubbed his temples, trying to rid himself of the headache.

"Well can we hurry up and get out of dis galaxy?" Taz whined.

"Taz, it'll take as long as it takes, I have no control over it!"

"But I can't even work out or I'll get dehydrated!"

"Then why don't we watch a movie?"

Taz glared at him for a few moments before nodding. She wedged herself under his arm as the menu for _The Karate Kid_ popped up on screen. Since they didn't leave the galaxy for another week, they would cuddle while watching a movie each day.

**3. Subtle: **Up walked back to the bar where his friends were sitting, a rather dejected look on his face. "She shut me down." He sighed as he took his seat between Taz and Krayonder. He took a swig of his beer.

Taz pouted a little bit, mocking him. "Aw, poor baby. Jou know jou could just ask me for a date." She winked and Up's heart jumped a little bit. "I know tons of girls that would love to date jou."

And there went that spark of happiness. His expression sobered up immediatly. "Taz, can I talk to you outside for a minute?" Taz followed him with a confused expression on her face.

"What is it Up?"

He sighed and turned to her. "You know that I like you."

"What do you me-"

"Taz, I know you heard me telling Commander Criss about when we were on that mission a few years back"

She looked at the ground. "Oh. You saw me and Lieutenant Beatty then, huh?"

Up gave her a slightly bitter smile. "Yeah," he said softly. "What I don't understand is why is it for the past year, even though you've known I like you, you've been teasing me so much." He took a breath and interrupted the beginning of Taz's sentence. "You- you talk to me like I'm your boyfriend, but you never do a freaking thing. When we were on that last mission, and excuse me if I'm wrong, you seemed to be sticking close to me far more often than necessary ; for three nights in a row you insisted to sleep in the same bunk as me and never even acted like there was anything strange about that, and you can't just do those things without me getting some more-than-friendly vibes from that. I like you Taz. A lot. And unless you feel the same way about me, I'd really appreciate it if you'd stop stringing me along. If you like me, can you just tell me now?"

A few moments of silence entailed. Taz closed her eyes. Up began walking away. "Up. Up. UP!" He turned to look at her.

"What?" His eyes didn't reveal any emotion

Taz bit her lip before talking again. "Up, I've been doing all these things, dropping hints for a reason. I really, really like jou. It's just that... I've been hurt before. Badly, by lots of people. It's hard for me to tell people my feelings anymore. I was hoping that jou'd catch on and, well jou know, make a move." Tears were glistening in her eyes as she looked up at him. "And I'm sorry if it made jou feel like I was stringing you along, but that's the only way I know how to flirt right now." Taz's voice was beginning to catch. Up pulled her into his arms, wrapping them around her waist as she wrapped her own arms around him as well.

"Taz. I understand. Thanks for telling me." He smiled at her. Before either of them could realize what was happening, their lips had met in their first kiss.

"Wow." They breathed in unison. "That was just... wow." Up said. They smiled at each other and walked back into the bar, hand in hand.

**66. Rule:** There was an unwritten rule between Up and Taz that when either of them had a bad dream, they would wake the other up to be comforted. They never spoke of it, but it happened every time. Taz woke one night after they had drifted apart. She longed to go down the hall to talk to Up about it, but she knew that she couldn't. She sat up in her bed, crying. Taz felt so alone.

Down the hall, Up had woke up as well. He sat up panting in his bed, and was on his way to the door when he remembered that he and Taz were no longer on speaking terms. He lay back in his bed and closed his eyes tightly as a tear rolled down his cheek. He hated being alone.

**15. Affront:** "How the hell did a chick that tiny get to be Lieutenant?" A recruit that Taz was meant to be teaching asked right as she and Up walked in. Taz turned to him, affronted.

"Leave it, Taz." Up warned her, sensing her displeasure.

"Okay, _idiotas_, I'm going to teach jou about sparring." Taz announced.

"Yeah, like this chick could beat me sparring." The same recruit boasted. Taz turned and glared at him, eyes hard. She looked back to Up, silently asking permission to beat the shit out of this kid. Up nodded, to her relief.

"Fine den. Jou come into de ring." The young boy swaggered towards her. "What is jour name?"

"Kristof. Kristof Nast."

Taz curled her lip. "De hell kinda name is dat?" When the boy opened his mouth to answer, she cut him off. "Don't answer dat. Now get into jour sparring stance."

Nast took a loose stance, leaving most of his body open to attack. Taz hit his jaw, roundhouse kicked him in the side and dropped down, pulling his leg out from under him. He landed on the floor with a dull thump.

"Get up, jou _estupido_ boy! Dat was nothing." She yelled at him. "If jou think jou know how to spar, jou are _patetico_." Nast rolled over and sat up, rubbing his jaw where she hit him. "Get up and fight me again!"

He got up, a determined look on his face, improving his stance slightly. He punched at her face, but she blocked it and jabbed him in the stomach. He bent over, and she hit him again before kicking the back of his leg.

"Okay, jeez, you proved your point." Nast grumbled and pushed himself off the floor.

"Good. Now get back in line jou_ cabron_." Taz walked back to Up, who kissed her cheek. There were some titters through the class before Taz glared at them again.

**45. Zeal: **Taz was always zealous towards fighting. That was, until she realized how attractive Up was. It first happened shortly after her sixteenth birthday. They were fighting in the training room, but the cooling systems had broken. Up had stopped fighting for a moment and peeled off his sweat-soaked shirt. Her eyes bugged out of her head at how toned and muscular his body was. She shook it off and they went back to sparring.

It wasn't until years later that she actually got to act on her feelings. The same situation was happening, though it was a year after their mission to Bug World. Up peeled off his shirt, revealing his robot and human sides. Sensing an opportunity, Taz pounced on him, kissing the Commander with zeal.

**51. Done:** "It's over Up. I'm done." Taz said before walking away from Up, who was now tearing up. Water was running down her cheeks as well, but the pair breaking up was really for the best.

Later in the night, Taz woke. She looked over at the clock and found that it 3:10 AM. Groaning, she turned over and smacked a pillow on her face. She couldn't stop thinking about Up. He had really made her a better person. With him, she was kinder, more open, even if it was only to him, and less sharp with other people. He was better with her too. It was obvious, especially after his injury. When she was around him, his limp wasn't as exaggerated, he didn't let the littlest things get to him and he was closer to the hard commander that she first met. With a sigh, Taz rolled over again and tried to sleep. However, after twenty eight unsuccessful minutes, she finally relented and slipped out of bed. Not bothering to put on a robe, she opened the door to her room and started walking to Up's room. As she got closer she began running until she got to the door. She punched in the four digit code and burst into Up's room. Luckily for her, he was still awake, watching _The Karate Kid_ without her. She noticed that his eyes were red.

"Up. I don't care anymore." These were the only words she said, and a huge grin broke out on Up's face.

"Really? You don't care that we might get demoted?"

"No. _Te amo_, Up. _Para siempre._"

With hardly a moment's notice, Up's lips were crashing down on hers, woes of earlier forgotten.

**71. Divided:** "I do not know calculus, ask jour daddy." Taz said to her fifteen year old daughter.

"DAD!" Rose Lopez-Walker called. "I NEED HELP!"

In the living room, Up rolled his eyes and walked into the kitchen. "What is it Rose?"

"Mom told me to ask you about calculus."

Up chuckled and looked over at his wife, who smiled at him and shrugged.

"You divided it wrong, Rose." Up said gently "Instead you have to move this number up here and..."

Taz, who was reading in the oversized chair in the corner, chuckled, seeing the parallels between the sight before her and when Up taught her calculus all those years ago.

**52. Justice: **"Would the alibi come before the court and tell us what happened that night." Judge Montgomery called. Taz, dressed nicer than her usual combat pants and tank top, walked up to the stand.

"Now, Lieutenant Taz. You say that Commander Up was with you the night the the key was stolen, correct?"

"_Si, _we were in his room." Taz responded, her eyes flickering over to Up.

The judge raised her eyebrows. "You do realize that relationships between ranks is prohibited, correct?"

"Oh, no we were not doing anything _inapropriado_, we were watching _De Karate Kid._"

The judge nodded and took a note. "And what time did you go over to the Commander's room?"

"Around five o'clock."

"And when did you leave?"

Taz blushed. "I didn't. I slept over in his room."

Judge Montgomery took this rather calmly. "Then what time did you fall asleep?"

"Most likely around eleven o'clock, but Up was asleep before me." Taz replied.

"Did you hear any disturbances during the night?" One of the council members asked.

"No, and I would've. I'm a very light sleeper."

"Given this evidence, we will rule that Commander Up is not guilty. The two of you are free to go."

The pair walked outside of the courtroom, gigantic smiles on both of their faces.

"Thank you Taz. I could've been ejected from the GLEE if it hadn't been for you."

"It's _no hay problema. _I don't no what I'd do without jou." Then, without another thought, Up leaned down and kissed her. It was brief, but wonderful.

When he pulled away, Taz was awestruck. She touched her lips; they were still tingling. _Had that really just happened?_

**49. Remain: **Taz was crying. Now, she hadn't cried for years, but she felt that she had a reason. Up was dead. He had been struck with Zapper fire in battle at the same time that a robot shot him with a flame thrower. There was nothing left of him, not even his robot side had been spared. Only Taz's memories of him remained.

**100. I Do:** Up was nervous. He was pacing in his handsome tuxedo, taking deep breaths and wanting to relax in a nice warm bubble bath.

"Up, would you stop pacing? Everything is going to be fine." Bug reassured him.

"Yeah, man," Krayonder added "you're in love with her right?" Up nodded eagerly "Then get it over with and marry the chick."

"Commander, you're sure to be real happy. When I married Megagirl it made me the happiest guy in the whole universe." Tootsie told him. Up was calmed down slightly and looked over the three groomsmen that were just comforting him.

"Thanks boys. I'm just real nervous it's the first time I done something like this."

"Believe me, Up. You won't regret it." Bug said, placing a claw on his shoulder.

In another room across the Starship, Taz was nearly pulling out her hair with frustration. "February I do not want a dress like dat. It is _estupido_." She glared at the monstrosity of a dress, with its fluffy bottom and strapless top.

"Taz!" February whined. "It's so pretty though..."

"No, February." Taz said with an air of finality "It's too much like de dress I wore at my _Quincenera._"

"Oh." February said quietly. "Well, how about this one?" The dress she held up was much less puffy, with a bottom that flared out slightly, a sweetheart neckline and translucent short sleeves that draped down to her waist. There was some slight light pink embroidery in the top half, almost the same colour as her quincenera dress.

"It's perfect." Taz said softly. She dressed in it, then February finished off her makeup. Taz pinned the comb with the veil attached to the top of her head. She looked at herself in the mirror, smiling slightly.

"You're doing it Taz." She whispered to herself "After all you've been through, you're getting married to the man you love." She began to tear up, but stopped herself when her bridesmaids appeared, February, Specs and Megagirl. She had no Maid of Honour, like Up had no best man.

It was now time for the wedding. Up stood at the front of the chapel, a small group of colleagues from the GLEE sitting before him, Bug, Tootsie and Krayonder at his side. The bridal march started playing and the bridesmaids walked down, starting with Specs. They each wore a blue dress reminiscent of Up's blue eyes.

After what seemed like ages to Up, Taz walked down the aisle. She was accompanied by no one, just her alone. Up stopped breathing for a minute as he watched his fiancee walk down the centre of the chairs. He forgot about everyone else; his eyes were only for her. By the time she got up to where he stood, Up was grinning like an idiot.

Not bothering to look at her, Taz shoved her bouquet in February's direction, then grabbed Up's hands.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of two fine Starship Rangers." Admiral Albain began. As she was reading through the lengthy text, both Taz and Up were thinking of everything they had done together. When he saved her from the robots twelve years ago, the time he taught her calculus, when she had stood up for him when people thought he had gone soft. They even thought about their fights and what happened on Qo'nos. They looked into each other's eyes and smiled. This moment was perfect.

"Do you, Upton Walker, take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife?"

"I do."

"And do you, Tazia Felicitas Lopez, take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband?"

"_Si, _I do."

"Then by the power vested in me, I pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss the bride." The Admiral said to Up, a small smile on her face.

Up lifted Taz, joining their lips gently before Taz grabbed his tie and pulled him closer, smiling into the kiss.

That was the moment that they both knew. They would never lose each other again.

* * *

><p><strong>So, this is the last chapter of the story! *tear* I'm glad everyone has enjoyed it, and thanks to everyone that has reviewed. :)<strong>


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